(Adnkronos) – Beijing ‘kills’ US drones and also indirectly hits Ukraine by using sanctions as a weapon. Skydio, the largest drone manufacturer in the United States and the main supplier of the Ukrainian armed forces in the war against Russia, is in fact facing a serious supply chain crisis due to Chinese sanctions. The Financial Times explains it, underlining that Beijing’s move is depriving Skydio of essential components. Sanctions imposed by China’s Foreign Ministry on October 11 also targeted two other defense companies and a dozen individuals, in retaliation after the United States approved $567 million in defense aid to Taiwan. Skydio, which had recently signed an agreement with the Taiwan fire brigade, suffered the effects of the sanction without having had time to find alternative suppliers.
The company has asked the Biden administration for help: Last week, CEO Adam Bry met with US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and senior White House officials, sharing concerns about China’s disruption of supply chains and slowdowns in the supply of drones to Ukraine which are also essential for intelligence operations.
“This is a clarifying moment for the drone industry,” Bry wrote in a note to clients obtained by the Financial Times. If there was ever any doubt, this action makes it clear that the Chinese government will use supply chains as a weapon to advance its own interests over ours.” “This is an attempt to eliminate the leading American drone company and increase the world’s dependence on Chinese drone suppliers,” he warned.
Skydio has let its customers know that it is rationing the number of batteries to one per drone due to the Chinese move, and does not expect to have new suppliers until the spring. In recent days the company has been in constant contact with Asian partners to find alternative solutions, and Taiwan’s vice president Hsiao Bi-khim was also contacted. John Moolenaar, Republican chairman of the House China Committee, said China’s control of supply chains for drones, pharmaceuticals and other industries is a “loaded gun” aimed at the U.S. economy. “The Administration and Congress must work with industry to establish boundaries that protect our companies from the CCP’s economic coercion and protect the American people from our primary adversary – who weapons these types of supply chain dependencies against us ”.
Skydio, based in San Mateo, California, sells to private and government customers, including the U.S. military. It has sent more than 1,000 drones to Ukraine for intelligence gathering and reconnaissance, but also to document Russian war crimes. The company said its latest model, the X10, was the first US drone to pass Ukrainian electronic warfare tests – meaning they are difficult to jam – which is why Kiev has requested thousands of them. The Chinese move comes as the US Congress is considering a law that would ban Americans from using drones made by DJI, the Shenzhen company that dominates the global commercial drone industry.
“We suspect that Skydio was targeted by Beijing because it is probably seen as a competitor to DJI,” a US official told the Financial Times. “If there is a silver lining, we can use this episode to accelerate our work on chain diversification. of supplying drones away from China.”
(Adnkronos) –
Beijing ‘kills’ US drones and also indirectly hits Ukraine by using sanctions as a weapon. Skydio, the largest drone manufacturer in the United States and the main supplier of the Ukrainian armed forces in the war against Russia, is in fact facing a serious supply chain crisis due to Chinese sanctions. The Financial Times explains it, underlining that Beijing’s move is depriving Skydio of essential components. Sanctions imposed by China’s Foreign Ministry on October 11 also targeted two other defense companies and a dozen individuals, in retaliation after the United States approved $567 million in defense aid to Taiwan. Skydio, which had recently signed an agreement with the Taiwan fire brigade, suffered the effects of the sanction without having had time to find alternative suppliers.
The company has asked the Biden administration for help: Last week, CEO Adam Bry met with US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and senior White House officials, sharing concerns about China’s disruption of supply chains and slowdowns in the supply of drones to Ukraine which are also essential for intelligence operations.
“This is a clarifying moment for the drone industry,” Bry wrote in a note to clients obtained by the Financial Times. If there was ever any doubt, this action makes it clear that the Chinese government will use supply chains as a weapon to advance its own interests over ours.” “This is an attempt to eliminate the leading American drone company and increase the world’s dependence on Chinese drone suppliers,” he warned.
Skydio has let its customers know that it is rationing the number of batteries to one per drone due to the Chinese move, and does not expect to have new suppliers until the spring. In recent days the company has been in constant contact with Asian partners to find alternative solutions, and Taiwan’s vice president Hsiao Bi-khim was also contacted. John Moolenaar, Republican chairman of the House China Committee, said China’s control of supply chains for drones, pharmaceuticals and other industries is a “loaded gun” aimed at the U.S. economy. “The Administration and Congress must work with industry to establish boundaries that protect our companies from the CCP’s economic coercion and protect the American people from our primary adversary – who weapons these types of supply chain dependencies against us ”.
Skydio, based in San Mateo, California, sells to private and government customers, including the U.S. military. It has sent more than 1,000 drones to Ukraine for intelligence gathering and reconnaissance, but also to document Russian war crimes. The company said its latest model, the X10, was the first US drone to pass Ukrainian electronic warfare tests – meaning they are difficult to jam – which is why Kiev has requested thousands of them. The Chinese move comes as the US Congress is considering a law that would ban Americans from using drones made by DJI, the Shenzhen company that dominates the global commercial drone industry.
“We suspect that Skydio has been targeted by Beijing because it is probably seen as a competitor to DJI – a US official told the Financial Times – If there is a silver lining, we can use this episode to accelerate our work on chain diversification of supplying drones away from China.”
