Greece has accelerated efforts to establish a domestic unmanned systems industry after signing new development contracts with local defence companies under the coordination of the Hellenic Centre for Defence Innovation (HCDI).
The initiative gained momentum following operational trials conducted during the Greek Armed Forces’ large-scale Parmenion exercise in 2025, where several locally developed unmanned aerial vehicle prototypes were evaluated under realistic military conditions. The trials marked one of the first attempts to integrate domestically developed drone technologies into Greek military training cycles.
Following these evaluations, the Ministry of National Defence authorised four development contracts aimed at advancing key technologies within Greece’s emerging drone ecosystem. The agreements focus not only on unmanned platforms themselves but also on enabling technologies such as autonomy software and networked operations.
Greek media first highlighted the initiative in February when Kathimerini newspaper reported that Greece planned to conduct repeated operational trials of domestic unmanned systems during multiple training cycles throughout 2026.
Initial funding for the programme is estimated at around €10–15 million, underscoring that the effort remains primarily focused on research, prototyping and early operational experimentation.
The programme centres on four main capability areas.
One project focuses on the development of low-cost loitering munition drones designed for one-way attack missions. These systems are intended to provide small ground units with relatively inexpensive precision strike capabilities on the battlefield.
A second contract covers a Class-I tactical unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) designed for reconnaissance, target acquisition and limited strike missions in support of ground forces.
The third development line concentrates on autonomy and artificial-intelligence software enabling coordinated drone operations, including swarm-type mission management and automated decision-support systems.
The fourth element of the programme targets the broader technological ecosystem required to sustain unmanned operations, including sensors, communications links and mission-management infrastructure.
Although the Greek government has not publicly identified the contractors involved, Greek defence sources frequently link the programme to a small group of domestic UAV developers active in the country’s emerging drone sector.
Among the companies most often mentioned are ALTUS LSA, which produces the ATLAS family of heavy-lift VTOL ISR drones; SAS Technology, developer of the SARISA armed multirotor UAV and the EMPUSA tactical drone series; and Intracom Defense Electronics, which participates in research programmes focused on drone networking and swarm technologies. The state-owned Hellenic Aerospace Industry is also part of Greece’s emerging unmanned aviation ecosystem.
Alongside these initiatives, Greece is pursuing a separate flagship unmanned aircraft project known as the ARCHYTAS UAV. The hybrid vertical take-off aircraft is being developed by a consortium led by Hellenic Aerospace Industry together with Greek universities, including Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and Democritus University of Thrace. The programme aims to demonstrate Greece’s ability to design and produce indigenous unmanned aircraft platforms.
Operationally, Greek military planners see domestically developed drones as particularly relevant for surveillance and situational awareness missions across the Aegean islands and the wider Eastern Mediterranean maritime domain. Small tactical UAVs and loitering munitions are expected to support island-defence concepts and provide additional reconnaissance capabilities in maritime areas where persistent aerial coverage remains limited.
Beyond operational requirements, the expansion of Greece’s drone programmes also reflects broader strategic concerns about unmanned warfare in the region.
Over the past decade Türkiye has emerged as one of the most visible exporters of unmanned combat systems, fielding platforms such as the Bayraktar TB2 and Bayraktar Akinci across multiple operational theatres.
Greek defence planners have responded by expanding UAV procurement from abroad, including the acquisition of the MQ-9B SeaGuardian and the leasing of IAI Heron systems from Israel.
However, these purchases have also highlighted Greece’s reliance on foreign suppliers for unmanned systems technology.
Unlike Türkiye’s vertically integrated drone industry led by companies such as Baykar and TUSAŞ, Greece is attempting to build an innovation ecosystem linking universities, research centres and smaller defence firms. Through the HCDI programme, Athens now aims not only to field new unmanned platforms but also to develop the technological and industrial infrastructure required to sustain a national drone capability over the long term.
For Athens, the programme represents less a procurement effort than a long-term attempt to build a domestic drone industry.