August M
When conflict drags on, necessity becomes the mother of rapid invention.
Country after country learns that fighting a modern war requires stretching every dollar to produce long-range firepower without draining national reserves, reports UNITED24 Media.
Bargain firepower
A domestic arms producer in Ukraine has scaled up assembly of a brand new long-range weapon. The FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile costs slightly under $600,000 per unit, coming in at roughly one-sixth the price tag of an American Tomahawk missile.
Despite its lower cost, the heavy missile packs a powerful punch. Each unit carries a 1,150-kilogram warhead specifically built to punch through reinforced concrete structures deep inside enemy territory.
Operations with the new hardware are already underway across long distances. In June, Ukrainian forces launched a Flamingo missile against a Russian military component factory in Cheboksary, located more than 950 kilometers from Kharkiv.
Long-distance strikes
Fire Point CEO Iryna Terekh revealed to The Guardian that the strike required a complex 1,800-kilometer flight path. She described the strike as one of the “longest recorded cruise missile missions” in modern history.
Manufacturing has accelerated significantly as the company scales up operations to meet frontline demand. Fire Point currently churns out around 100 Flamingo missiles each month, alongside hundreds of FP-1 and FP-2 long-range attack drones.
Those lighter drones carry a price tag between $55,000 and $75,000 and feature an impressive reach exceeding 1,600 kilometers. They have regularly hit key industrial sites, including Russian oil infrastructure.
Industrial expansion
The rapid growth has transformed the defense startup into a major manufacturing powerhouse. Fire Point now runs 83 production sites within Ukraine and one facility in Denmark, employing roughly 6,000 workers.
The firm’s weapons now form the backbone of Ukraine’s deep-strike capabilities. Speaking about their operational impact, Terekh told The Guardian, “I am not aware of any long-range attack over the past few months that has not involved our products.”
Looking ahead, the company aims to roll out Ukraine’s first domestic ballistic missiles, including the FP-9 model, before the end of 2026. Fire Point is also joining the European Freyja air defense initiative to build affordable interceptor missiles.
Sources: United24Media, The Guardian
