German defense company Rheinmetall plans to supply Ukraine with Skyranger mobile air defense systems designed to combat drones in 2025. This was announced by the company's CEO Armin Papperger in an interview with the ZDF television channel.
The Skyranger can be mounted on a variety of chassis, including Leopard tanks. According to Papperger, each system is capable of controlling a 16 square kilometer (4×4 km) area and destroying or neutralizing all enemy drones within that area. He noted that such systems could be useful for Ukraine in the current hostilities.
The supply contract, worth hundreds of millions of euros, is planned to be signed on September 10 at the Defence Security and Equipment International Exhibition and Conference (DSEI) in London.
The Rheinmetall chairman also said that Germany would be able to defend itself in 2029 in the event of a possible Russian aggression because the defense industry is rapidly expanding production capacity. He rejected criticism from Defense Minister Boris Pistorius about delays in the industry, but acknowledged that there are some delays in all defense projects.
Papperger said the company is expanding its production capacity and plans to increase its workforce from the current 40,000 to 70,000 within three years. Including supplier personnel, about 280,000 people will be involved in Rheinmetall projects. The company expects to receive about 300,000 job applications in 2025.
Rheinmetall shares have risen by about 1,700% since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine. When asked whether the company hopes for a continuation of the war in Ukraine, Papperger said that Rheinmetall is not interested in continuing the war, and stressed that he personally wants it to end as soon as possible because "the people in Ukraine are suffering terribly."
It is known that after the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in August, where a possible end to the war was discussed, the value of Rheinmetall shares decreased by 6% in one day.