MIRABEL – October 29, 2026 -- Volatus Aerospace (TSX: FLT) has won a five-year Government of Canada contract to supply low-cost tactical intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) uncrewed aircraft systems to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). The initial order covers 100 systems, with options for up to 4,900 more, for a potential total of 5,000.
Ottawa caps unit price at C$5,000 within a C$25 million envelope
The government's procurement framework set a maximum price of C$5,000 per system and a maximum procurement envelope of C$25 million. Volatus' contracted pricing is commercially confidential. Canada can exercise the 4,900 optional systems at its sole discretion.
Options are not backlog, Volatus says
The company states the optional systems are not committed purchases, backlog or revenue. Any exercise remains subject to government requirements, approvals and contract amendments. Delivery of the initial tranche is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2026.
Volatus converts its first Defence Drone Initiative qualification into a CAF contract
Volatus was selected through the first Request for Proposal under Stream 1, Uncrewed and Autonomous Systems and counter-UxS, of the Defence Drone Initiative (DDI) Marketplace. The company is qualified across all five DDI work streams, and this award is its first conversion of that qualification into a CAF contract.
The remaining streams cover communications, engineering and integration, testing and training, and innovation and experimentation. Each future opportunity will go through a separate Government of Canada procurement process.
Contract covers aircraft, payloads, ground stations and sustainment
The package is an end-to-end tactical ISR solution. It includes aircraft, payloads, ground control stations, data links, training, sustainment, spare parts, documentation, and software and firmware support. The systems are intended to give CAF land forces a sustainable UAS capability across a wide range of missions.
CEO Glen Lynch said Canada is seeking "sovereign, secure and supportable defence technologies" that can be fielded efficiently and scaled as requirements change.
Volatus points to its Innovation and Manufacturing Hub in Mirabel, Québec, and its Operations Control Centre in Vaughan, Ontario, as its Canadian manufacturing, integration and operational base for the program.