German defense concern Rheinmetall has successfully tested its own development, the FV-014 loitering munition. During the demonstration, the latest strike drone was launched from a universal modular container installation placed on a military truck, including while the platform was moving.
German defense concern Rheinmetall has successfully tested its own development, the FV-014 loitering munition. During the demonstration, the latest strike drone was launched from a universal modular container installation placed on a military truck, including while the platform was moving.
Details of the product demonstration and the characteristics of the complex are reported in the official company release. The tests themselves took place in July 2026 at the National Test Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems in Germany.
According to the manufacturer, the FV-014 kamikaze drone is designed for highly mobile operations and combines the functions of reconnaissance, target identification and precision strike. The drone is capable of operating at a distance of up to 100 kilometers and staying in the air for up to 70 minutes. With a starting weight of about 22 kilograms, the drone carries a 6-kilogram high-explosive fragmentation warhead (HEDP), capable of penetrating more than 600 millimeters of solid armored steel.
Engineers paid special attention to the survivability of the device on the modern battlefield. It is noted that the FV-014 has a high degree of autonomy for operation in conditions of strong suppression of satellite navigation (GNSS). The electric motor ensures a silent approach to the target, and the special design reduces the radar and infrared visibility of the drone.
In addition to pinpoint strikes, the system supports the autonomous swarm function. This allows you to destroy several objects at once or deliberately overload enemy air defense systems with a massive attack. Despite the high autonomy, the operator at the ground station maintains constant control and can cancel the mission at the last moment if the operational situation changes.
The drones are launched using a launch booster from the Containerized Missile Launcher, a universal modular installation. It is based on a standard 20-foot ISO container, which can accommodate up to 18 such drones. The container can be installed on trucks (e.g. Rheinmetall HX), ships, or used as a hidden stationary point thanks to the remote activation function from sleep mode.
