Ukraine’s defense industry is undergoing a significant transformation, marked by an increased capacity to strike deep within Russian territory. This evolution is largely driven by private Ukrainian companies that have developed the capability to produce long-range drones and missiles. Among these innovative enterprises, Fire Point (FP) has emerged as a prominent player, led by its 35-year-old CEO, Iryna Terekh.
Fire Point’s Advanced Weaponry
Fire Point is manufacturing a range of sophisticated weaponry designed to challenge Russian military infrastructure. This includes the FP-1 and FP-2 long-range drones, capable of reaching targets between 1,000 and 2,700 kilometers away. The company has also developed the ‘Flamingo’ (FP-5), a Ukrainian-made cruise missile with a range exceeding 3,000 kilometers. The Flamingo is designed to carry a 1.15-ton warhead capable of penetrating concrete structures.
One notable deployment of the Flamingo occurred in June, when it was used to strike a Russian military supply depot approximately 965 kilometers from Kharkiv. Terekh stated that the actual flight distance, due to complex navigation routes, was around 1,800 kilometers. The Flamingo is significantly more affordable than its U.S. counterpart, the Tomahawk missile, costing less than $600,000 per unit compared to the Tomahawk’s $3.5 million price tag.
The lighter FP-1 drone has been instrumental in targeting Russian oil refineries, which are often protected by weaker air defense systems. These attacks have reportedly contributed to a 20% reduction in Russia’s oil production. Fire Point is also advancing in the field of anti-ship missiles, with the development of the 200km-range FP-7 and the 850km-range F-9, both nearing operational deployment. The company is also working on guided missiles.
From Construction to Defense: Iryna Terekh’s Journey
Iryna Terekh’s path to leading a defense technology firm was unconventional. She studied architecture at Kyiv National Construction University but did not graduate. She initially ran a manufacturing business focused on concrete structures and urban infrastructure. Her expertise lay in designing and managing production lines, a skill that would prove invaluable in her later role.
In her twenties, Terekh viewed weapons as inherently destructive. However, her upbringing in Kharkiv, a major Ukrainian city close to the Russian border, profoundly shaped her perspective. During the initial phase of the war, her apartment complex was heavily shelled by Russian forces. Witnessing the conflict firsthand, including instances of Russian troops firing on civilians during evacuations, fueled a desire to contribute to Ukraine’s defense.
Fire Point, initially founded as a support company for film and video production, became involved in defense efforts. Terekh and other founding members began by volunteering to deliver military supplies. Recognizing the limitations of existing, outdated defense industry structures in meeting the military’s needs, Terekh realized that Ukraine needed to bolster its own production capabilities. She also concluded that relying on other nations for security came at a significant cost.
This realization led Fire Point’s founders to decide on developing their own long-range strike drones. The initial concept was sketched on a napkin in a restaurant. Unlike typical Silicon Valley IT startups that often begin in garages, Fire Point’s early prototypes were built in underground shelters to evade Russian air raids.
The Core Principle: Scalable Production
Terekh emphasized that the key to both construction and defense manufacturing is designing a system that allows for mass production. When she became responsible for production at Fire Point in 2023, her primary objective was to establish a manufacturing system capable of producing thousands of units of their designed weapons.
What began as a small team of fewer than 20 people has grown into a defense enterprise employing thousands across Ukraine and in 80 locations internationally. Despite this expansion, Terekh maintains that her core mission remains “building factories.” She believes that the ability to produce a large quantity of the same weapon is more critical in wartime than developing a single, superior weapon.
This philosophy was evident in the development of Fire Point’s first strike drone, the FP-1. The goal was not to create the world’s best drone, but to produce a long-range drone comparable to Iran’s Shahed series, used by Russia. This drone was intended to carry Ukraine’s existing Soviet-era 50kg high-explosive aerial bombs (FAB-50).
However, Ukraine’s stockpile of FAB-50 bombs was insufficient. Leveraging the production lines and the network of hundreds of subcontractors established during the FP-1 development, Fire Point pivoted towards missile development. Terekh explained that the FP-1 project provided extensive experience in overcoming production challenges, significantly expanding their component suppliers and supply chains. This laid the industrial foundation for missile development.
Fire Point began developing cruise missiles in the summer of 2024. Terekh described the approach as simply “making a bigger drone.” The entire process, from concept to initial deployment, took just nine months. The resulting cruise missile, the Flamingo (FP-5), with its 3,000km range, has become a key weapon capable of striking strategic targets in Russia.
The company continuously refined the missile’s design, experimenting with five different turbojet engines to ensure production could continue even if a specific engine supply was interrupted. Fire Point’s component manufacturing and assembly facilities are spread across approximately 90 locations in Ukraine and Europe. This decentralized approach is designed to prevent a single strike from halting production.
There is no single “main factory” at Fire Point. This distributed manufacturing model allows for the production of up to seven Flamingos per day, totaling over 2,500 missiles annually.
The Flamingo Missile and Future Developments
The Flamingo missile earned its name because early test flights were painted pink to make it easier to track the engine residue. Although the initial plan was to use red paint, a shortage led to the pink color. A common joke within the company is that the worst thing that can happen when a woman leads a weapons manufacturer is that the weapons turn pink.
However, Terekh clarified that actual deployed missiles are painted in colors that blend with the environment. After a mission, the military collects all flight data, and the company’s anti-jamming software is updated if Russian countermeasures evolve. The weapons continue to evolve as the war progresses.
Terekh’s current focus is on anti-ship missiles. Fire Point is developing the FP-9, a new type of anti-ship missile with a target range of about 850 kilometers, capable of striking Russian military facilities and airbases in the Russian rear. The company is also developing its own guided missile, the FP-7.x. Early versions are designed to explode near enemy missiles, similar to the U.S. Patriot PAC-2, with future iterations aiming for a direct hit-to-kill capability, like the PAC-3.
Underpinning all these efforts is the strategy of decentralizing production facilities across numerous sites.
Ukraine’s Post-War Industrial Future
Terekh believes that after the war, Ukraine must move beyond its traditional role as an agriculture-focused nation. She advocates for leveraging the drone, missile, and software technologies developed during the conflict into new export industries.
Terekh, who married and had two children in her twenties before divorcing, shared an anecdote about her children’s reaction to a recent Russian missile attack. On March 14th, after Russia launched a large-scale air assault, her children told her they were glad she had attacked the Bortkino facility. The Bortkino plant in Russia’s Udmurt Republic is a key facility for producing the Iskander-M missile, which can change direction mid-flight.
In March, at a seminar on Ukrainian defense industry, Terekh stated that the defense and aerospace sectors offer a unique opportunity to directly express anger towards the enemy. She described it as incredibly beneficial for mental health and a source of feeling that she is in the right place. “There is nothing more satisfying than having the opportunity to respond in kind to the enemy,” she remarked.
