Ondas to buy airframe maker Stemme, targets 10 ULTRA drones a month by 2028
What's the deal? Ondas HoldingsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has agreed to acquire 100% of Stemme, the German maker of the airframe behind its ULTRA surveillance aircraft, in an all-cash deal of undisclosed value. The move supports a plan to expand ULTRA production, including in the US, targeting 10 aircraft per month by 2028.
What's the endgame? ULTRA is a long-endurance intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft, flying more than 70 hours with over 400 pounds of payload. It is already operationally deployed by the US Air Force and built on Stemme's type-certified S12 composite airframe.
Why buy the supplier? Owning Stemme would give Ondas control over airframe capacity, cost and schedule as it scales. "Our objective is to align aircraft production with the scale of customer requirements," said Eric Brock, Ondas chairman and chief executive officer.
Where's the expansion? Stemme runs at roughly 25% of capacity across its Strausberg and Pasewalk sites, spanning about 135,571 square feet. Ondas plans to lift utilisation there while establishing 345,000 square feet of planned US production space to shorten supply lines and address domestic-sourcing concerns.
Why now? The Pentagon is pushing a mixed-fleet approach that pairs high-end crewed assets with lower-cost, attritable drones fielded at scale. US Air Forces Central has awarded a contract worth up to $270 million for ultra-long-range ISR drones, underscoring demand.
What could go wrong? The deal remains subject to closing conditions and regulatory approval. Ondas cites an $18.8 million ULTRA order in July and up to eight deliveries in 2026, but has not established firm orders sufficient to support the 10-a-month 2028 target.
The signal: The deal reflects a broader US drive to onshore drone production and field cheaper, persistent surveillance. By owning its airframe supply, Ondas is betting that control over capacity—not just demand—will decide who scales fastest.
Read more: finance.yahoo.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
