San Diego drone maker General Atomics has offered to sell two MQ-9 Reaper drones to Ukraine for one dollar “help bring a rapid closure to this conflict.”
The deal was first reported Tuesday by the Wall Street Journal, and confirmed Thursday in a statement from Linden Blue, the company’s CEO.
“We offered to transfer two of our own, company-owned training aircraft, plus the ground control station and other hardware required to operate them, for the symbolic price of $1, and reiterated our offer to train the first cadre of pilots and maintainers at our expense,” Blue said.
He said the Reaper has been used “to devastating effect in combat by U.S. and partner nations for more than two decades” and can “provide an immediate impact.”
The Journal said Blue made the proposal to Ukraine’s defense attaché in Washington last week.
“Factoring in hardware and training that is essentially free, the offer is a remarkable deal with no strings attached. All that is required is approval from the U.S. government,” said Blue.
“Our goal is now, and has always been, to help the Ukrainian armed forces defend and protect their homes and families, and help bring a rapid closure to this conflict before more lives are lost,” he said.
The MQ-9 Reaper can fly missions as long as 24 hours and carry both bombs and missiles.