From Idea to Assembly Line
Ukraine’s defence industry continues to show remarkable pace in developing air defence solutions. F-Drones, which has been producing UAVs since 2023, began work in autumn 2024 on its ambitious interceptor project — the LITAVR, named after the traditional Cossack war drum.
By summer 2025, the drone had successfully passed all trials and received official codification. Serial deliveries to Defence Force units began that autumn. Today, the system can be ordered by the military through the closed BraveMarket platform of the Brave1 defence cluster.
Technical Parameters and Sky Records
The LITAVR unmanned aerial vehicle has been designed both to eliminate hostile aerial targets and to strike ground positions.
Interceptor Specifications
- Speed: reaches up to 350 km/h.
- Ceiling: maximum altitude of 9 km.
- Range and records: standard operational radius is 40 km, though Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces have already logged a record flight of over 80 km.
- Optics: equipped with both day and thermal cameras, allowing pilots to switch seamlessly in flight.
The system is fully adapted to operate under intense enemy electronic warfare. It uses a non-GPS navigation suite, while radar interaction and pilot assistance are powered by F-Drones’ proprietary LARAG software.
Smart Guidance and Safe Return
LITAVR’s standout feature is its integrated automatic terminal guidance system (known as Last Mile or Pixel Lock). Once the drone detects and identifies a target, the automation takes over, steering the drone into collision while the operator controls only speed.
To keep frontline systems current, the manufacturer upgrades all first-generation drones free of charge to include this auto-guidance capability.
Since May 2026, LITAVR has also been fitted with a remote-control module as standard. This allows operators to conduct missions from hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away. If no target is found, the pilot can remotely switch the initiation board to safe mode and return the UAV to base for reuse.
Industrial Independence
F-Drones pursues a strategy of reducing reliance on foreign — particularly Chinese — components. The company develops its own software, electronics, flight controllers, regulators, and electric motors.
Assembly has also evolved: the company has largely abandoned slow 3D printing, retaining it only for minor parts. The drone is now produced using plastic injection moulding, ensuring greater structural strength and consistent performance across serial units.
Find out more about LITAVR's capability here.