Russian missile destroys US firm’s Kyiv drone factory

The Guardian ^ | Thu 30 Jul 2026 13.40 EDT | Aram Roston

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Strike on Terminal Autonomy plant appears to be first time in the war that Moscow has targeted a US company

A drone factory in Kyiv destroyed by a Russian ballistic missile on Friday was owned by a US corporation registered in Delaware, in what appears to be the first time Moscow has targeted a US company in the conflict.

Terminal Autonomy makes precision “deep-strike” drones with guidance systems that are resistant to Russian jamming signals, according to a person familiar with the company.

The phrase “terminal autonomy” refers to the final phase of a kamikaze drone’s attack in which AI takes over control of the weapon after the defending force jams radio waves or mobile service.

State records show that the corporation was registered in Delaware in 2023. The company’s website says: “We deploy AI-guided loitering munitions and precision munitions, which are already in active service against enemy assets on the frontline.”

Terminal Autonomy did not reply to an emailed request for comment. The Ukrainian defence ministry also did not respond to an email.

Anthony Vinci, a former senior US intelligence officer who wrote The Fourth Intelligence Revolution: The Future of Espionage and the Battle to Save America, said: “The Russians don’t care who owns the manufacturing facility. It’s still a target. They don’t care if it’s American or someone else’s.”

Early in July, Donald Trump, who had previously been lukewarm to efforts to arm Ukraine, said the US would license Ukraine to manufacture Patriot anti-aircraft missiles.

Vinci said: “I do think if Patriot missiles or any American system was manufactured in Ukraine, I think the Russians would target that manufacturing facility.”

The Russian state news agency Tass first reported on...

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TOPICS: Military/Veterans
KEYWORDS: boom; deltaputinbot; oyvey; putinthewarpig; russiansuicide; russiantrollfarm; ukenaziisgoboom; vladtheimploder

[delta7]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o4iWs8js8Us

Russia Huge Strike Across Ukraine Great Destruction; US Without Patriots Ukraine No AD; DobropiliKya

25 Overview of Ukraine and Middle East conflicts
02:01 Suriak on normal pace Russian advance
05:37 Massive Russian strike across Ukraine
07:27 Strike hits targets nationwide, not just Kiev
10:44 Kh32, Oreshnik missiles being stockpiled
16:21 Russian Defense Ministry target breakdown
20:59 Flamingo missile production sites hit
21:39 Black Sea shipping attacks intensify
24:02 Julia Mendel on Ukraine’s decline
27:54 80 percent of Ukraine trade halted
31:45 Rasvet satellite system and drone strikes
39:06 Ukraine economy cascading toward collapse
42:26 Zelensky requests 300 Patriot interceptors
45:00 Why the US said no to Zelensky
59:52 Russian ground advances in Sumy and Donbass
1:04:35 Dobropillya defenses rapidly collapsing
1:12:35 Moscow’s renewed confidence and mood

As usual, Mercouris ( a Brit) tells it the way it is. In other words, what the western MSM will not mention.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Vlad can hit any target in Ukraine he wants to, not one square meter is safe. He has shown much restraint, and it appears with the absolutely insane amount of strikes recently he is taking the gloves off.

You are obviously a Putinista. </sarcasm>

The war groupies think Z-man is winning.

Be a shame if he found himself on the business end of a payload-free Mach 10 Oreshnik.

[Mount Athos]

Hey I have an idea. Let’s spend 100s of billions more on these weapon giveaways it doesn’t matter if they get blown up, think of how much money the corrupt middlemen will be getting. It’s fantastic, their families will be set up for life with villas in Switzerland and great cars

Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of men are desperately hiding to avoid forcible conscription, but Europe is happy to slay as many ukrainians as possible

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

--- "The war groupies think Z-man is winning."

It is interesting to look back and into the company, which was in part a venture capital strategy from a small Silicon Valley group.

Formerly Known As -- One Way Aerospace
Ownership Status -- Privately Held (backing)
Financing Status -- Venture Capital-Backed
Corporate Office --
1160 Santa Cruz Avenue
Menlo Park, CA 94025
United States

Source: Terminal Autonomy Overview

Additional source: Terminal Autonomy DealRoom

The business has been around since 2023, and Menlo Park office seems to be mostly AI work and venture capital fund raising. One looks back:

"Terminal Autonomy, formerly known as the startup One Way Aerospace, has announced the successful completion of procurements aimed at supporting the combat deployment of the AQ 400 Scythe system in the Ukrainian Armed Forces." more....

Source: Defense Forces receive new drones capable of striking deep into Russia RBC - Ukraine, 18 December 2023.

Given actual data and references as above, sure sounds as if some US investors ( along with Latvians and Germans ) have seen the return on their investment go up in smoke.

Lots more info out there. "New technology" it was not, per se.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

While the Guardian trots out a "new" event -- attack on a US business in Ukraine -- the reporter either did not know or suppresses a number of stories about earlier losses to US investments in the war.

An example from a year ago:

"Russia has targeted Ukraine’s cities and hit a US-owned consumer electronics factory in the largest combined drone and missile attack in more than a month, only five days after Donald Trump’s meeting with Vladimir Putin in Alaska." more

Andy Hunder, head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, said the site hit belonged to Texas-based Flex and urged Trump to show Putin that 'the United States protects its own'.

'Russia continues to destroy and humiliate US businesses in Ukraine, targeting companies that invest and trade on the US stock markets,' Hunder said in a Facebook post. 'Russia is not only destroying Ukraine — it is undermining US leadership, values and US business'."

Source: US factory in Ukraine hit in largest Russian air attack for weeks Financial Times, 21 August 2025

[tlozo]

He has shown much restraint, and it appears with the absolutely insane amount of strikes recently he is taking the gloves off.

LOL, Putin has shown restraint? Complete nonsense, missiles and drones have always been fired off at Ukrainian cities as soon as they are produced.

The largest record aerial attack launched by Russia during the war occurred on September 7, 2025, when Moscow unleashed an unprecedented barrage of 810 drones and decoys alongside 13 missiles targeting multiple regions across Ukraine.

Russia Fires ‘Factory-Fresh’ Missiles at Ukraine, Air Force Says

Ukraine said markings on recently launched Russian missiles indicated they had been manufactured within the past few months. The number of missiles launched in July also exceeded estimates of what Moscow would need to maintain its stockpile, while the share of ballistic missiles used rose significantly compared with cruise missiles.

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/81147

[tlozo]

Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of men are desperately hiding to avoid forcible conscription,

Russian families block military bus carrying soldiers

Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia 1,400 km (870 miles) east of Moscow.

Russian families blocked a military bus carrying soldiers labeled "deserters." Women screaming at the windows: "I already buried my husband in this war!"

[TexasGator]

Is this the same Alexander Mercouris?

---

Russian Media Columnist Alexander Mercouris struck off over claim that senior law lord had him kidnapped

Another author on Kremlin’s Sputnik International will be A. Mercouris, disbarred for deceiving a client. Now A. Mercouris is a columnist of RT, Voice of Russia and russia-insider.com.

https://www.stopfake.org/en/russian-media-columnist-alexander-mercouris-struck-off-over-claim-that-senior-law-lord-had-him-kidnapped/

[ansel12]

“””””avoid forcible conscription”””””

The draft?

[McGruff]

But we aren’t supplying Ukraine with weapons anymore. /s

[TexasGator]

“He has shown much restraint, and it appears with the absolutely insane amount of strikes recently he is taking the gloves off.”

That means mobilization ... draft.

Bringing the war to Moscow and St. Petersburg with a promise of a closure of the war.

Will this result in Russia offering peace in exchange for territory or continued mass casualties?

Elections are in September. Putin will win but it will showcase their fake elections.

[TexasGator]

“Vlad can hit any target in Ukraine he wants to, not one square meter is safe.”

Russia kills a few civilians. Meanwhile, in July, Ukraine hits over 100 Russian ships and destroys their Wildberries distribution centers and 30% of Russian refineries.

Russia is buying gasoline from India!

---

AI Overview

Russian billionaire industrialist Andrey Melnichenko published a high-profile essay outlining concerns over the war in Ukraine, warning that Russia faces a mounting crisis and economic strain. Rather than offering an explicit peace roadmap, his intervention signals that parts of the Russian elite see the current path as unsustainable and want a stake in future negotiations and national stabilization.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

---- 'Mercouris ( a Brit) tells it the way...."

...he would like the narrative to be told. In a similar and opposite manner, you were "corrected" in comment # 28 about Mercouris ( who does have an odd past ) with a different narrative. The Ukrainian source:

Domain: stopfake.org
Registered On: 2014-03-02
Registrar: Internet Invest, Ltd. dba Imena.ua
IANA ID: 1112
URL: https://www.imena.ua/

Source: whois query on stopfake.org

Their funding source, per their own site, may be read towards the bottom of the page "About us"

Source: Public organization «Center for Media Reform»– an educational platform founded by the Mohyla School of Journalism with the aim of introducing high standards of journalistic education in Ukraine

An indication on the "lack of biad" may be seen in Stop Fake's X page, "% fake, 100% truth: verified by StopFake ✅ #putindumbass #putindovboyob"

Source: tPinned user avatar Stop Fake @StopFakingNews Dec 20, 2024 Dec 20, 2024

When a piss-poor paste-up can be accompanied by "0% fake, 100% truth: verified by StopFake," one finds narrative formation and support pretending to be not fake while itself publishing fake.

This is all fascinating, as FR hosts a post with almost 3,800 comments, mostly pro-Ukraine and specifically referencing Ukrainian propaganda. Is there Russian propaganda? Of course.

A small difference in the context of Free Republic.

No Freepers operate a thread hosting Russian propaganda, while posting demonstrably Ukrainian propaganda is a daily event.

See: first 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-80 ... 3,741-3,759 next last Begun 2/3/2025/

Messaging. Messaging. Messaging. Narration control and more narration control. Right here on Free Republic.

[TexasGator]

“Mercouris ( who does have an odd past ) “

Basically a media where spouting Russia propaganda.

[kiryandil]

Germany got a US license to build Patriot missiles four years ago. It still hasn’t produced a single one.

Ukraine just got the same license this week. A reality check on defense production promises.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

--- "Basically a media where spouting Russia propaganda."

Try again, as Miss Leslie Winkle in TBBT says so amusingly, "Dumb ass.". And this time make a cogent remark in a complete sentence.

As to spouts of propaganda, we've our very own Niagra Falls of Ukrainian propaganda, so "bird's do it, bee's do it."

[TexasGator]

Me: -— “Basically a media where spouting Russia propaganda.”

“Try again”

OK. Basically a media who spouts Russia propaganda.”

[dfwgator]

As to spouts of propaganda, we’ve our very own Niagra Falls of Ukrainian propaganda, so “bird’s do it, bee’s do it.”

---

NIAGARA FALLS!!!!! Slowly I turned....step...by...step.....inch....by.....inch.....

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

Abbott & Costello - The Niagara Falls Sketch (Slowly I Turned)

Thanks for that. A joy to see it again.....

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

---- "OK. Basically a media who spouts Russia propaganda.”

Nice to see you repair your own fumbling.

So here is challenge as to an approximation of Russian propaganda on FR compared to Ukrainian propaganda on FR.

My opening bid, just for you, "Leslie" : Posted on 12/3/2025 [ seven months in duration ]

Russian victory would cost Europe twice as much as supporting Ukraine, study finds first 1-50, 51-100, 101-150, 151-200 ... 3,751-3,762 next last

Pro-Ukrainian thread with currently 3,762 comments.

Your responding bid? A comment or two from delta7?

That would make a first go in numbers, 3,762 "spouts" to 2 "spouts"?

Quite a shellacking, when propagandizing is turned into numbers. Your turn, as Leslie Winkle would say to Sheldon, "dumb ass."

Disclaimer: I am ready with a next demonstration of propaganda to post a nice retrospective of the "Denys Davidov" years, right here on FR, complete with hotlinks. And then we can move on to the Jake Broe "America is a fascist nation" Ukrainian propaganda. And much more. Lots more "spouts."

Spouts. Spouts and spouts.