A state-of-the-art interceptor drone that will be made in the UK and deployed to the front line in Ukraine is set to go on display in Downing Street.
The Octopus drone will be put on display in the House as a constant reminder of Ukraine’s ongoing resistance – and the UK’s unwavering support – in the face of Russian aggression.
The defensive drone was gifted to the Prime Minister by President Zelenskyy during his visit to Downing Street in October. It was the first drone of its kind to come to the UK, ahead of the mass production of Octopus in the UK later this year, following a landmark agreement to share battlefield technology struck by the Prime Minister and President Zelenskyy in the summer.
The Octopus embodies the UK-Ukraine 100 Year Partnership, with technology data sets from Ukraine’s front line plugged into UK production lines, allowing British defence firms to rapidly design and build, at scale, cutting edge military equipment available nowhere else in the world. The data fed into the Octopus changes every six weeks to keep pace with the rate of developments on the frontline.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said
“The display of the Octopus drone in Downing Street will serve as a poignant reminder of Ukrainian people’s bravery and courage as they defend their freedom from Russia’s ongoing barbaric attacks.
“It will also stand as a proud symbol of the unique and unwavering friendship between our two countries, with this defensive drone combining frontline Ukrainian innovation with British industrial heft to create cutting-edge capability here in the UK to defend both our countries.”
Interceptor drones are considerably cheaper than regular air defence missiles and have proved to be highly effective in countering the waves of one-way attack drones Russia continue to launch at Ukraine’s cities. They fly quickly to intercept incoming drones and missiles, destroying them before they reach their targets.
The drone developed under Project Octopus was designed by Ukraine, with support from UK scientists and technicians and has already proved successful on the battlefield, proving highly effective against the Shahed one-way attack drone variants used by Russia – despite costing less than 10% to produce than the drones they are designed to intercept. The same Russian drones were used to fly over NATO airspace in Poland in recent weeks.
