OHIO — A Ukrainian drone manufacturer has selected northwest Ohio for its first major U.S. assembly and manufacturing center following its first Pentagon contract, a project expected to create at least 300 new jobs and bring a multimillion-dollar investment to Lucas County.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, JobsOhio and Ukrainian Defense Drones (UDD) announced Monday that the company will establish the facility in the Village of Holland. UDD is the U.S. company representing Ukraine’s F-Drones.
The new facility will support U.S. and allied demand for first-person-view drones, unmanned systems, training and testing, and dual-use commercial applications. The project will also focus on workforce development, supply chain localization, hardware and software integration, customer demonstrations, and future U.S. expansion.
“There is no better place than Ohio for our allies to build the technology that strengthens our national defense, and UDD’s decision to invest here means 300 new jobs for the people of Lucas County,” Gov. DeWine said. “This investment strengthens our economy and the manufacturing base that our nation’s security depends on.”
According to state officials, the project follows UDD’s selection in the U.S. Department of War’s Drone Dominance Program, a $1 billion initiative designed to expand domestic drone manufacturing and rapidly equip military units with low-cost drones. The program plans to purchase more than 200,000 drones by 2027.
UDD secured a U.S. government prototype contract to deliver 2,000 first-person-view drones after ranking sixth overall during the first phase of the program’s Gauntlet competition. F-Drones has more than three years of wartime operational experience developing and deploying drone technology in Ukraine.
“Becoming the first Ukrainian drone manufacturer authorized by the Government of Ukraine to export drone systems to the U.S. military is a historic milestone, and the next step is to share the technology to produce these drones on American soil. We’re proud to support the vision behind the emerging U.S.–Ukraine Drone Deal and to help strengthen the security and technological leadership of both our nations,” said Stas Khutor, CEO of F-Drones.
Khutor added, “Ukraine did more than adapt to drone warfare — it helped invent it. We were the first in the world to turn drones into a tool of national defense, to refine them under fire into something close to perfection, and to make them the backbone of our ability to hold the line against a far larger aggressor.”
Officials said the investment adds to a growing list of aerospace and defense companies establishing operations in Ohio, citing the state’s manufacturing workforce, engineering talent, military partnerships, research institutions and testing infrastructure as key advantages.
“Ohio gives defense innovators everything they need to move from innovation to production at scale — an exceptional workforce, a deep manufacturing supply chain and the speed to deliver the products needed to arm U.S. and allied forces,” said JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef. “Together with our partners at the Regional Growth Partnership, we welcome UDD’s decision to onshore production in Ohio. This investment strengthens America’s defense industrial base, secures critical manufacturing on U.S. soil, and reinforces Ohio’s leadership in advanced aerospace and defense manufacturing.”
The project is also expected to create opportunities for regional suppliers in machining, fabrication, electronics, plastics, packaging, logistics, testing, training and workforce development as UDD works to localize more of its supply chain in Ohio over time.
State officials said the Toledo region already has more than 130,000 people employed in advanced manufacturing, with an industry gross regional product of $11.6 billion, representing nearly one-quarter of Ohio’s advanced manufacturing sector.
