Elbit Opens Drone Factory in Serbia

Elbit Systems and the Serbian state-owned company Jugoimport SDPR have opened a joint drone assembly plant in Serbia. In Šimanovci, the facility will manufacture, among other systems, Israeli-developed combat drones. According to the two partners, they are planning at least three additional defense factories in the country.

Elbit Systems holds a 51 percent stake in the new joint venture, while Jugoimport SDPR owns 49 percent. Around 100 employees work at the facility.

The plant is part of broader military cooperation between Israel and Serbia. According to the available information, the modernization and cooperation agreement between the two countries is worth more than $1.6 billion. Various unmanned aerial vehicles will be assembled in Šimanovci. These include smaller systems designed for short-range operations with rotary wings, as well as faster combat drones with greater range.

According to Israeli sources, the plant will manufacture, among other systems, short-range drones designed for attack missions. It will also produce longer-range UAVs capable of operating at altitudes of up to six kilometers.

The new production facility is therefore intended to provide capabilities that go beyond Serbia’s existing drone systems. The Serbian Pegasus, which is designed for combat and reconnaissance missions, is cited as a comparison.Serbia has previously procured systems from Elbit. These include the Hermes 900 unmanned reconnaissance and combat drone.

According to Israeli sources, Serbia is also interested in Elbit’s SkyStriker loitering munition. Three years ago, the company announced a SkyStriker order from Europe without identifying the customer country.

According to industry sources, the war in Ukraine has increased European interest in such systems. SkyStriker combines the functions of a drone and a loitering munition and is designed for precision strikes against tactical targets.

Elbit describes SkyStriker as a fully autonomous system. According to the company, it can independently locate, acquire, and attack targets designated by the operator. The warhead is integrated into the fuselage.

SkyStriker is powered by an electric motor. According to Elbit, this reduces its acoustic signature and enables low-altitude operations with relatively low detectability.

The system is designed for long-range, precision tactical strikes. Elbit particularly sees it as a means of providing mobile troops and special forces with an airborne precision-strike capability. The available information does not indicate which SkyStriker variant Serbia might specifically be interested in or whether a procurement will actually take place.

According to the available information, the drone factory in Šimanovci is only the first step in expanding industrial cooperation. Elbit and Jugoimport SDPR reportedly plan to establish at least three additional defense factories in Serbia.

This means that cooperation between the two countries extends beyond the delivery of finished weapons systems. In addition to procuring Israeli technology, a local manufacturing base for unmanned systems is gradually being established.

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