How Much Does an AQ-400 Scythe Drone Cost?

Published on July 31, 2026 | Written by Alec Pow
This article was researched using 7 sources. See our methodology and corrections policy.

An AQ-400 Scythe costs about $15,000 as a basic airframe and approximately $30,000 with guidance equipment and other mission features. Buyers planning for an operational long-range strike aircraft should use $25,000 to $30,000 per drone rather than the lower airframe figure.

An older manufacturer-linked listing placed the starting price at $25,999. The three published figures describe different configurations and dates rather than a single fixed government purchase price.

The Scythe is a Ukrainian one-way strike aircraft manufactured by Terminal Autonomy. Its low-cost construction is intended to support large production batches and long-range missions.

Configuration determines the bill.

TLDR: An AQ-400 Scythe costs about $15,000 to $30,000, with roughly $30,000 serving as the better mission-ready planning amount.

How Much Does an AQ-400 Scythe Drone Cost?

Jump to sections

• Basic AQ-400 airframe: about $15,000 (at $30 per hour, earning that amount would take about 12.5 full-time workweeks, before taxes)
• Historical starting listing: $25,999
• Guided configuration: about $30,000
• Ten-drone aircraft total: $150,000 to $300,000
• Fifty-drone aircraft total: $750,000 to $1.5 million
• Five hundred drones: $7.5 million to $15 million

What this is in plain terms

The AQ-400 Scythe is a long-range one-way attack drone built by Terminal Autonomy for Ukrainian military use. The aircraft flies toward a planned target and is expended during the mission. Its design emphasizes inexpensive materials, quick assembly, compact transport, and production methods that can be distributed among several workshops rather than concentrated in one highly specialized aerospace plant.

Terminal Autonomy’s current AQ-400 product page lists a range of 750 kilometers, a maximum takeoff weight of 100 kilograms, a payload capacity of 43 kilograms, a speed near 144 kilometers per hour, and endurance near seven hours. The company says its current autonomy package uses visual and terrain information with AI assistance and can route the aircraft without continuing GPS or communication links. Those are manufacturer specifications rather than an independently audited combat-performance record.

Earlier reports placed the explosive warhead near 32 kilograms. A larger payload near 70 kilograms was described as possible when sacrificing range. The difference between payload capacity and explosive weight matters because the aircraft also carries mounting hardware, fuzing, navigation equipment, and other mission components. Buyers are paying for an airframe and guidance platform, not simply a box containing explosives.

From $15,000 to $30,000

The lower $15,000 (about 12.5 full-time workweeks at $30 per hour) figure was reported for the basic Scythe airframe. The New Voice of Ukraine stated that guidance systems and other additions raised the cost to approximately $30,000 in its December 2023 cost report. The Defense Post published the same distinction while reporting the first military deliveries and an initial production contract in its Scythe procurement account.

An older One Way Aerospace page, from before the company used the Terminal Autonomy name, showed a starting amount of $25,999. The War Zone preserved that figure and compared it with the later $15,000 basic configuration and $30,000 equipped version in its AQ-400 price analysis.

The price gap can cover navigation modules, cameras, terrain matching, communication or video-link equipment, launch hardware, configuration work, and other electronics. Payload type can also change the delivered amount. Public sources do not provide line-item prices for each component, so assigning a precise dollar value to the guidance computer, warhead, or booster would be unsupported.

AQ-400 cost measure	Estimated amount	Likely scope
Basic airframe	$15,000	Lower equipment configuration
Historical starting price	$25,999	Earlier manufacturer-linked listing
Guided aircraft	About $30,000	Guidance and added mission equipment
Ten aircraft	$150,000 to $300,000	Aircraft only
Five hundred aircraft	$7.5 million to $15 million	Aircraft before program support

Worked cost for 10 to 500 drones

A ten-drone strike group would cost $150,000 (about 2.4 years of full-time work at $30 per hour) at the basic-airframe price because 10 × $15,000 = $150,000. Ten guided aircraft at $30,000 each would cost $300,000. The calculation covers the aircraft values and does not establish the price of payloads, launch teams, route planning, transport, or additional decoy systems.

• Ten basic aircraft: $150,000
• Ten guided aircraft: $300,000
• Fifty basic aircraft: $750,000
• Fifty guided aircraft: $1.5 million
• Five hundred basic aircraft: $7.5 million
• Five hundred guided aircraft: $15 million

The fifty-drone figures come from 50 × $15,000 = $750,000 and 50 × $30,000 = $1.5 million. A 500-aircraft program spans $7.5 million to $15 million. At the guided price, 1,000 aircraft would reach $30 million.

Large batches may lower assembly expense through standardized components and repeated production. They can also add factory expansion, inspection, storage, spare parts, training, security, transportation, and acceptance testing. A procurement budget based only on aircraft quantity may understate the money needed to field and sustain the system.

Guidance, payload, and launch

Terminal Autonomy describes the current AQ-400 as using visual and terrain data for autonomous routing under electronic interference. This type of equipment can include cameras, onboard processing, stored terrain data, inertial sensors, altimeters, and flight-control software. The company does not publish the value of each component.

Earlier Scythe descriptions also mentioned a leader-follower arrangement in which a smaller number of aircraft carry full navigation equipment while basic followers support a larger group. Such a structure may lower the average aircraft price, though it also creates mission-planning and coordination requirements. Public evidence does not establish how often this method has been used.

The aircraft can take off from a short runway using its landing gear or use rocket-assisted launch equipment where runway access is unavailable. A booster, launcher, ground vehicle, or launch rail may sit outside the unit price. The U.S. Army’s AQ-400 equipment profile confirms the Scythe’s one-way strike role and distinctive rectangular airframe.

Program costs can add 10% to 40% above aircraft value for payloads, launch equipment, transport, storage, mission preparation, training, spare parts, and support. This is an editorial planning range because no complete Scythe support package has been publicly priced.

Cost per payload kilogram

The AQ-400’s stated 43-kilogram payload capacity creates a basic cost measure of about $349 per kilogram. The arithmetic is $15,000 ÷ 43 = approximately $349. A guided aircraft costing $30,000 produces a result near $698 per kilogram.

Using the stated 750-kilometer range, the basic price equals $20 per kilometer because $15,000 ÷ 750 = $20. The guided price equals $40 per kilometer. These calculations are comparison tools, not operating charges. A mission does not become cheaper merely because the target is closer, and the aircraft cannot be reused after impact.

The ratios also do not measure accuracy, penetration of air defenses, reliability, payload effect, or mission success. An aircraft destroyed before reaching the target has consumed its entire purchase value without delivering its payload. A cheaper drone may require larger groups to achieve the same operational result as a more expensive guided weapon.

The metric still helps explain the Scythe’s position. Terminal Autonomy designed it to move a meaningful payload hundreds of kilometers at a price far below most conventional cruise missiles. The low airframe cost supports repeated procurement and large launches rather than reliance on a small inventory of premium weapons.

Production scale

Initial reporting in December 2023 said Terminal Autonomy had been contracted to supply 50 Scythes per month. Other accounts described a planned increase to 500 units and a later ambition of 1,000 per month. Militarnyi confirmed delivery of the first batch in its initial fielding report.

Those figures were production plans rather than audited monthly delivery records. Forbes reported in December 2024 that the hoped-for expansion to 500 Scythes per month had not occurred at the previously described pace. Funding, component supply, competing drone programs, testing, and factory capacity can all limit output.

A Russian ballistic missile destroyed a Terminal Autonomy facility in Kyiv in July 2026. The plant manufactured AQ-400 Scythe and AQ-100 Bayonet drones, according to The Guardian’s factory report. No workers were reported killed.

The company has not disclosed how much capacity was lost, whether other facilities can replace it, or whether procurement prices will change. Rebuilding, dispersing machinery, increasing security, and shifting suppliers can raise costs. The public $15,000 to $30,000 range remains the best price reference, but delivery timing and post-strike contract values are less certain.

AQ-400 vs Shahed and Liutyi

The Scythe occupies the lower end of long-range strike-drone pricing. Shahed-type drones are often estimated at $20,000 to $50,000 in production-cost comparisons, though procurement contracts and newer configurations can produce much higher implied values. The cost of a Shahed drone varies by model, production country, electronics, and contract structure.

The AN-196 Liutyi is a larger Ukrainian aircraft commonly estimated near $200,000. One Liutyi at that value equals about seven guided Scythes because $200,000 ÷ $30,000 = approximately 6.7. Using the $15,000 basic price, the same amount could fund about 13 Scythe airframes.

That comparison does not make the aircraft interchangeable. Liutyi has a larger airframe, heavier payload, different range configurations, and a different production approach. Scythe emphasizes low-cost volume and flat-sheet construction. Liutyi provides a higher-capacity long-range platform.

The wider long-range military drone market runs from low five-figure one-way aircraft to multimillion-dollar reusable systems. The intended target, route, guidance needs, defensive environment, payload, and acceptable loss rate determine which price class fits the mission.

Who can buy the AQ-400

The AQ-400 is controlled military equipment rather than a civilian commercial drone. Known acquisition and use occur through Ukrainian defense channels. A foreign transfer would require government authorization, export approval, end-user controls, payload restrictions, secure handling, and trained military personnel.

A complete operating organization needs mission planners, payload technicians, launch crews, transport, storage, communications, intelligence support, and procedures for coordinating with other aircraft and air-defense units. Buying airframes without that structure would not create an operational long-range strike capability.

The $15,000 figure is most useful for understanding the stripped aircraft’s production philosophy. The $30,000 amount is the safer planning figure for a guided aircraft. A complete procurement should add a separate allowance for payloads, launch systems, spares, facilities, training, transportation, and technical support.

When this cost estimate is useful

Makes sense if

• The $15,000 basic airframe is separated from the guided version.
• The $25,999 listing is treated as a historical price reference.
• Warheads, boosters, navigation, and support are checked separately.
• Production targets are not described as completed deliveries.
• Current supply disruption is acknowledged.

Doesn’t make sense if

• Every AQ-400 is assigned one fixed price.
• A bare airframe is described as mission-ready.
• Explosives and launch equipment are assumed to be included.
• The lower price is applied to every modern guidance configuration.
• Civilian retail access is expected.

The public figures answer different procurement questions. The lower amount shows how cheaply Terminal Autonomy designed the core aircraft to be manufactured. The upper amount is closer to what a buyer would budget for an aircraft equipped with navigation and additional mission hardware. A complete strike program costs more because it also needs payload handling, launch preparation, transport, storage, personnel, route planning, communications, and technical support.

No current Ukrainian government contract publishes a complete unit invoice. The working range must be assembled from manufacturer-linked material and defense reporting, then qualified for configuration and date.

What we checked

• Checked the $15,000 basic price through multiple 2023 reports.
• Confirmed the guided price near $30,000.
• Cross-referenced the historical $25,999 listing.
• Verified current range and payload claims through Terminal Autonomy.
• Checked the July 2026 factory destruction and the absence of revised pricing.

Article Highlights

• An AQ-400 Scythe costs about $15,000 to $30,000.
• The lower amount applies to a basic airframe.
• A guided mission configuration is better budgeted near $30,000.
• Ten aircraft cost about $150,000 to $300,000.
• Five hundred aircraft cost about $7.5 million to $15 million.
• The July 2026 factory strike creates new production and delivery uncertainty.

Answers to Common Questions

How much does one AQ-400 Scythe cost?

The public range is about $15,000 to $30,000. A guided aircraft with additional mission equipment is best budgeted near $30,000.

Why was the AQ-400 listed at $25,999?

That was an earlier manufacturer-linked starting figure. Later reporting separated a $15,000 basic airframe from a configuration near $30,000.

How much would 100 Scythe drones cost?

One hundred aircraft would cost about $1.5 million to $3 million before support, launch equipment, payloads, and training.

Is the warhead included in the price?

Public reporting does not consistently identify whether the quoted prices include the explosive payload. Procurement documents would need to define that item.

Can civilians buy an AQ-400?

No civilian retail channel is available. The Scythe is a military one-way strike aircraft subject to government procurement and export controls.