Drone Maker Teams With Ukraine-Tested Firm to Beat Jamming

• Red Cat Holdings Inc. signed a memorandum of understanding with Sine Advanced Engineering Inc. to integrate Ukraine-tested communications and navigation technology into its drones and uncrewed surface vessels.
• The technology is designed to keep command and control, data links, and positioning working when GPS and conventional links are jammed.
• Red Cat said Sine’s technology has been crucial to its Hellcat platform’s success in Ukraine. The companies will focus first on maritime platforms and networking gear.
• The Pentagon’s Drone Dominance program calls performance in degraded radio or GPS environments “paramount” as it plans to buy more than 200,000 low-cost drones by January 2028.
• Second-quarter revenue rose 527% to US$20.2 million, and Red Cat reaffirmed full-year 2026 revenue guidance of US$150 million to US$180 million.
• Six of seven analysts who have rated the stock in the past three months call it a “Buy,” and Red Cat reports third-quarter results on November 16.

Red Cat Holdings Inc. (RCAT:NASDAQ) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sine Advanced Engineering Inc. to integrate Ukraine-tested communications and navigation technology into Red Cat’s drones and uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), according to a November 2 release. Sine Advanced Engineering is the U.S. arm of Sine Engineering, which develops technology that keeps uncrewed systems communicating and navigating when GPS and conventional links are jammed.

The agreement sets up a framework for a long-term commercial and technology relationship between the two companies. They plan to integrate Sine’s technology into Red Cat’s Blue Ops USVs and its Red Cat Aerial drone platforms. The goal is to keep command and control, video and data links, and positioning working in GPS-denied and communications-contested environments.

“Ukraine has become one of the world’s most important proving grounds for drone communications and electronic warfare,” said Red Cat Chief Executive Officer Jeff Thompson. “Together, we’re building toward autonomous systems designed to succeed on the modern battlefield.”

The agreement is non-exclusive and targets U.S., Ukrainian, and allied defense customers.

Sine has been developing resilient communications, navigation, and onboard autonomy for highly contested environments since 2022. It has offices and research centers in Ukraine, the United States, and Finland. In 2026, Sine became the first investment of the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund, the release said.

Integration and field work are already underway. Red Cat said early integration of Sine’s technology “has been crucial to Red Cat’s success in Ukraine with its Hellcat platform.” The companies said they would focus first on maritime platforms and distributed networking equipment, including USVs, buoys, and beacons, before exploring the rest of Red Cat’s portfolio.

Clear Street’s Brian Dobson repeated his “Buy” rating and US$19 target,

“Ukraine has made one thing clear: resilient communications and navigation are not optional,” said Mark Edgar, co-chief executive officer of Sine Advanced Engineering. “They are foundational to the next generation of unmanned systems. Sine brings technology developed and tested in Ukraine under the realities of modern electronic warfare.”

Jamming on both sides of the war keeps escalating. Russia is fitting its drones and missiles with larger, jam-resistant satellite navigation antennas, so Kyiv now needs about twice as many jammers to stop each upgraded Shahed drone, Defense News reported on November 2. Russian defense firms have ordered more than 100,000 of the navigation modules this year, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence agency.

Electronic warfare units now routinely jam and spoof GPS signals across large parts of the battlefield, aerospace investor and former Pentagon executive Charles Beames wrote in Forbes in March. “When navigation fails, autonomy fails with it,” he wrote.

Red Cat describes itself as a U.S.-based provider of all-domain drone and robotic systems for defense and national security. In October, it combined its Teal Drones and FlightWave Aerospace teams into one division, Red Cat Aerial, according to an October 12 release. Red Cat Aerial’s products include the Black Widow, FANG, Edge 130, and Hellcat. At AUSA 2026, the division introduced TRICHON, a hand-launched, long-endurance vertical takeoff and landing tricopter for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

On the water, Blue Ops introduced its B-Series of USVs on October 22. The 18-foot B-18 finished sea trials and is available for orders ahead of schedule, and the 39-foot B-39 is in low-rate production, the company said.

“The Navy doesn’t need examples of what autonomous vessels might deliver years from now,” said Blue Ops President Barry Hinckley.

To support that maritime push, Red Cat on October 19 proposed to acquire all shares of Austria’s Steyr Motors AG (4X0:FSE) for €39.00 per share in cash. Steyr makes high-power-density engines for military vehicles and boats. An investor holding about 15% of Steyr’s shares has irrevocably agreed to tender them, and the offer runs through December 18.

In the second quarter, Red Cat’s revenue rose 527% from a year earlier to US$20.2 million, according to its August 6 results. The company ended June with US$325.6 million in cash and reaffirmed its full-year 2026 revenue guidance of US$150 million to US$180 million.

Red Cat will report third-quarter results after the market closes on November 16. Chief Executive Officer Jeff Thompson and Chief Financial Officer Christian Morrison will then attend the Deutsche Bank Global Space and Defense Tech Summit on November 18 and the Bank of America Defense Technology Forum on December 3, the company said.

Most analysts covering Red Cat still rate it a “Buy,” though the shares are trading close to their 52-week low. Of the seven analysts who have rated the stock in the past three months, six call it a “Buy” and one a “Hold.” Their average price target is US$16.14, TipRanks data show.

On October 23, Piper Sandler’s Clarke Jeffries lowered his target on Red Cat to US$6 from US$9 and kept his “Neutral” rating.

Clear Street’s Brian Dobson repeated his “Buy” rating and US$19 target on October 19.

Evercore ISI’s Amit Daryanani reaffirmed his “Buy” rating and US$15 target on October 14. He began covering the stock with that call on August 31.

Northland Securities’ Michael Latimore trimmed his target to US$13 from US$15 on September 17 but held his “Buy” rating.

On August 11, Roth MKM’s Craig Irwin kept his “Buy” rating and US$25 target.

On August 7, Needham & Company’s Austin Bohlig lowered his target to US$15 from US$20 but kept his “Buy” rating. Back in May, Bohlig had called Red Cat’s US$9.5 million U.S. Army order “another signal pointing to growing global demand for Red Cat’s portfolio.”

Also on August 7, H.C. Wainwright’s Amit Dayal maintained his “Buy” rating and US$20 target.

The Pentagon is buying small drones by the tens of thousands, and it wants them to keep working when GPS fails. Its Drone Dominance program has US$1.1 billion from the 2025 reconciliation law to buy more than 200,000 low-cost drones by January 2028, according to Drone Warfare research. In the program’s first round, in February, the Pentagon ordered 24,320 drones.

Jamming resistance is built into the requirements. The second round asks for drones that can operate in a “dirty” electromagnetic spectrum and resist the loss of satellite navigation. The solicitation calls performance in degraded radio or GPS environments “paramount.” Drones in that round’s test event flew electronic warfare lanes against counter-drone systems, and a later track for reusable bomber drones targets airspace where both GPS and radio links are denied.

The bigger budget fight is still ahead. The Pentagon’s fiscal 2027 request seeks US$53.6 billion for its Drone Dominance initiative, though Congress has not approved it.

The Navy is also stepping up spending on uncrewed vessels. In September, it chose Galliano Marine Services, Huntington Ingalls Industries, and Saronic Technologies to build 30 medium USVs at an average cost of about US$40 million each, Military Times reported. The service aims to grow its uncrewed surface fleet in the Indo-Pacific from four vessels to 30 by 2030.

The Navy has since opened a second round of testing that drops the high-speed and at-sea refueling requirements to bring in more suppliers. “I’m trying to back off of those so that I can have a healthy competitive industrial base,” said Christopher Miller, the Navy’s acting portfolio manager for robotic and autonomous systems.

What did Red Cat announce?

On November 2, Red Cat signed a memorandum of understanding with Sine Advanced Engineering, the U.S. arm of Ukraine-rooted Sine Engineering. The deal sets up a framework for a long-term commercial and technology relationship. The two companies plan to integrate Sine’s communications and navigation technology into Red Cat’s Blue Ops uncrewed surface vessels and Red Cat Aerial drones.

Why does jam-resistant technology matter?

Electronic warfare units routinely jam and spoof GPS across large parts of the battlefield in Ukraine. Russia is also fitting its drones with jam-resistant antennas, so Kyiv needs about twice as many jammers to stop each upgraded Shahed drone, Defense News reported. “When navigation fails, autonomy fails with it,” wrote former Pentagon executive Charles Beames.

Who is Sine?

Sine has developed resilient communications, navigation, and onboard autonomy for contested environments since 2022. It has offices and research centers in Ukraine, the United States, and Finland. In 2026, it became the first investment of the U.S.-Ukraine Reconstruction Investment Fund.

What else is Red Cat working on?

In October, Red Cat combined its drone units into Red Cat Aerial and unveiled the TRICHON reconnaissance tricopter. Its Blue Ops division introduced the B-18 and B-39 uncrewed surface vessels. Red Cat also offered €39.00 per share in cash for Austrian engine maker Steyr Motors AG, with the offer running through December 18.

How is Red Cat doing financially?

Second-quarter revenue rose 527% from a year earlier to US$20.2 million. The company ended June with US$325.6 million in cash and reaffirmed full-year 2026 revenue guidance of US$150 million to US$180 million.

What do analysts think?

Six of the seven analysts who have rated Red Cat in the past three months call it a “Buy,” and one rates it a “Hold,” according to TipRanks. Their average price target is US$16.14.

What should investors watch next?

Red Cat reports third-quarter results after the market closes on November 16. Management will then present at the Deutsche Bank Global Space and Defense Tech Summit on November 18 and the Bank of America Defense Technology Forum on December 3.