Factory for Manufacturing Mark I Air Defense Missiles Built in Latvia in One Year

A factory for manufacturing anti-aircraft missiles by Frankenburg Technologies has opened in Riga.

The factory will produce Mark I anti-drone missiles, the company said.

The Riga plant will assemble the missiles’ electronics and warheads.

Construction of the Riga plant took one year, and its production capacity is expected to reach 100 missiles per day by the end of the year, in conjunction with the planned final assembly plant in the Latvian city of Adazi.

The Riga plant covers an area of nearly 1,000 square meters, and the company plans to employ 50 people there.

Frankenburg Technologies plans to produce 1,500 missiles this year.

The cost of intercepting drones using the Mark I system is expected to decrease by more than a factor of ten, enabling the mass production of guided anti-aircraft missiles for supply to Europe and other allies.

After launching production in Latvia, Frankenburg Technologies plans to expand it to Estonia, the United Kingdom, and Poland as well, to reach a production volume of one million missiles per year.

They plan to manufacture 10,000 Mark I anti-drone missiles per year in Poland.

“Europe must transition from limited and expensive production to affordable systems manufactured in large quantities. Frankenburg’s operations in Riga exemplify the industrial goals and new mindset that Europe needs to strengthen its defense readiness,” the company emphasized.

The Mark I missile is set to become the world’s first affordable anti-drone solution operating on a “fire-and-forget” principle.

It is capable of engaging targets at a range of up to 2 km and an altitude of approximately 1.5 km.