France's drone production shifts from policy ambition to factory floor

France’s plan to scale military drone production is shifting from policy to factories, Reuters reports. Since the start of the year, at least six defence–automotive partnerships have been announced as President Emmanuel Macron’s government seeks the scale, automation and cost discipline of the car industry for drones. The strategy aims to build an industrial base able to produce tens of thousands of drones per year, though that would still be far below Ukraine and Russia’s output. French officials say they do not expect large near-term deployments over France, but want readiness. Examples include Valeo making electric drone motors in France for Harmattan AI and Renault targeting up to 1,000 Toutatis kamikaze drones per month from 2027.