“Our Drones Are Modern And Adaptive.” Why Europe Wants To Manufacture Ukraine’s Frontline Products
In December 2025, Germany’s Quantum Systems and Ukraine’s Frontline Robotics announced Europe’s first fully automated industrial drone production line for the Ukrainian Defense Forces, operating under the joint brand Quantum Frontline Industries. The facility is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2026 and will manufacture EW-resistant Zoom and Linza drones developed by Frontline Robotics.
Pavlo Kosolapkin, CTO of Frontline Robotics, spoke with Scroll.media about these drones and what makes them different.
Briefly about Linza and Zoom
Linza is a frontline-proven, multifunctional logistics drone equipped with a gyro-stabilized day or night camera featuring digital and hybrid zoom capabilities. It uses a proprietary communications channel that remains stable even under electronic warfare conditions.
Linza is designed for complex missions and works «out of the box.» Specifications:
- 10-inch body
- Tactical radius — up to 10 km
- Payload — up to 2 kg (one or two munitions)
- Ability to detect enemy electronic warfare equipment
- Gyro-stabilized daytime camera, 1280×720, 6× digital zoom
- Or gyro-stabilized thermal imager, 640×512, 30 Hz
- Cruising (effective) flight speed — 12–15 m/s
- Release system — single or double
- Distance from antenna station to operator without loss of communication quality — up to 50–100 m
The unmanned aerial vehicle complex Zoom is a reconnaissance drone designed for aerial surveillance, artillery correction, and the transmission of precise coordinates for combat preparation.
The system consists of a universal ground station and a customizable set of drones, selected based on the customer’s needs. It is codified according to NATO standards.
Specifications:
- 10-inch body
- Tactical radius — up to 15 km
- Ability to detect enemy electronic warfare equipment
- Gyro-stabilized daytime camera, 1280×720, optical zoom ×10, hybrid zoom ×30
- Or gyro-stabilized thermal imager, 640×512, 30 Hz
- Cruising (effective) flight speed — 12–15 m/s
- Visual navigation module with a loitering function
- Distance from antenna station to operator without loss of communication quality — up to 50–100 m
What makes these products stand out
As Kosolapkin explains, Linza and Zoom were built specifically for the war that is happening now, and that context defines their effectiveness.
«One of our priorities was and remains the ability of the aircraft to operate under heavy enemy electronic warfare and still accomplish its mission. That’s why the key technologies — our communications and video transmission systems — are developed in-house. This gives us a critical advantage: we have no external constraints that would limit our ability to scale or add new features. Of course, there are technical limitations, but overall, we can always adapt the system to meet the user’s needs.
These core technologies form the foundation of the entire unmanned system, as well as the drones themselves. From there comes the next stage: continuous product improvement based on military requirements. We observe how the frontline changes, how missions evolve, and the technical characteristics must evolve accordingly.
That’s what makes the product cool. It’s alive. Constant interaction with military users keeps it relevant, and for us, that is fundamentally important.»
Why this matters to German partners
As previously reported, the newly formed Quantum Frontline Industries is funded by the German Ministry of Defense. While the size of the investment has not been disclosed, the involvement itself is significant. So why bring in a Ukrainian manufacturer?
«We manufacture quadcopters, while Quantum Systems focuses on fixed-wing drones. That means we have different areas of expertise that strongly complement each other. German partners are also interested in working with a manufacturer that deeply understands its own technologies and is capable of developing them further,» Kosolapkin explains.
A key factor is Frontline’s control over its core technologies and subsystems, all of which are designed and produced in-house. This allows the company to scale quickly and adapt solutions to urgent military needs.
«This gives European partners confidence that our drones are modern and adaptive. And this is something European countries are currently lacking — simply because they are fortunate enough not to have combat operations on their own territory.»
How Zoom and Linza continue to evolve
Frontline Robotics was founded in 2023 around the idea of «robotizing war.» Since then, its products — Zoom, Linza, and Burya — have been in constant development.
«Because our company covers the entire cycle: service, repair, online support, and crew training — we understand very well where our products are strong and where they need improvement. We work on this continuously and clearly see what needs to change,» says Kosolapkin.
Every product has limitations. The real question is whether a company recognizes them and is willing to address them. Not all problems can be solved quickly — some involve extremely complex technological challenges.
A significant portion of the work involves refining critical systems, including video transmission, control, and optical navigation. The R&D team cannot stop — these systems must be improved constantly. There is effectively no ceiling.
This is a never-ending process, as the product must become more reliable, more stable, and more durable. It cannot be paused. Even if it looks from the outside like almost nothing has changed, very serious transformations may be happening under the hood. And this is one of those crucial steps that must take place with every product if it is to remain relevant.
In defense tech, detailed technical updates are rarely shared publicly. It’s a continuous cycle of competition, action, and counteraction, with both sides constantly adapting.
The most important and essentially the only correct ‘release’ of technical changes in this industry is when the product becomes simpler and more intuitive for the user, requires less time to learn, and reduces the risk of crew error.
“Our Drones Are Modern And Adaptive.” Why Europe Wants To Manufacture Ukraine’s Frontline Products
In December 2025, Germany’s Quantum Systems and Ukraine’s Frontline Robotics announced Europe’s first fully automated industrial drone production line for the Ukrainian Defense Forces, operating under the joint brand Quantum Frontline Industries. The facility is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2026 and will manufacture EW-resistant Zoom and Linza drones developed by Frontline Robotics.
Pavlo Kosolapkin, CTO of Frontline Robotics, spoke with Scroll.media about these drones and what makes them different.
Briefly about Linza and Zoom
Linza is a frontline-proven, multifunctional logistics drone equipped with a gyro-stabilized day or night camera featuring digital and hybrid zoom capabilities. It uses a proprietary communications channel that remains stable even under electronic warfare conditions.
Linza is designed for complex missions and works «out of the box.» Specifications:
- 10-inch body
- Tactical radius — up to 10 km
- Payload — up to 2 kg (one or two munitions)
- Ability to detect enemy electronic warfare equipment
- Gyro-stabilized daytime camera, 1280×720, 6× digital zoom
- Or gyro-stabilized thermal imager, 640×512, 30 Hz
- Cruising (effective) flight speed — 12–15 m/s
- Release system — single or double
- Distance from antenna station to operator without loss of communication quality — up to 50–100 m
The unmanned aerial vehicle complex Zoom is a reconnaissance drone designed for aerial surveillance, artillery correction, and the transmission of precise coordinates for combat preparation.
The system consists of a universal ground station and a customizable set of drones, selected based on the customer’s needs. It is codified according to NATO standards.
Specifications:
- 10-inch body
- Tactical radius — up to 15 km
- Ability to detect enemy electronic warfare equipment
- Gyro-stabilized daytime camera, 1280×720, optical zoom ×10, hybrid zoom ×30
- Or gyro-stabilized thermal imager, 640×512, 30 Hz
- Cruising (effective) flight speed — 12–15 m/s
- Visual navigation module with a loitering function
- Distance from antenna station to operator without loss of communication quality — up to 50–100 m
What makes these products stand out
As Kosolapkin explains, Linza and Zoom were built specifically for the war that is happening now, and that context defines their effectiveness.
«One of our priorities was and remains the ability of the aircraft to operate under heavy enemy electronic warfare and still accomplish its mission. That’s why the key technologies — our communications and video transmission systems — are developed in-house. This gives us a critical advantage: we have no external constraints that would limit our ability to scale or add new features. Of course, there are technical limitations, but overall, we can always adapt the system to meet the user’s needs.
These core technologies form the foundation of the entire unmanned system, as well as the drones themselves. From there comes the next stage: continuous product improvement based on military requirements. We observe how the frontline changes, how missions evolve, and the technical characteristics must evolve accordingly.
That’s what makes the product cool. It’s alive. Constant interaction with military users keeps it relevant, and for us, that is fundamentally important.»
Why this matters to German partners
As previously reported, the newly formed Quantum Frontline Industries is funded by the German Ministry of Defense. While the size of the investment has not been disclosed, the involvement itself is significant. So why bring in a Ukrainian manufacturer?
«We manufacture quadcopters, while Quantum Systems focuses on fixed-wing drones. That means we have different areas of expertise that strongly complement each other. German partners are also interested in working with a manufacturer that deeply understands its own technologies and is capable of developing them further,» Kosolapkin explains.
A key factor is Frontline’s control over its core technologies and subsystems, all of which are designed and produced in-house. This allows the company to scale quickly and adapt solutions to urgent military needs.
«This gives European partners confidence that our drones are modern and adaptive. And this is something European countries are currently lacking — simply because they are fortunate enough not to have combat operations on their own territory.»
How Zoom and Linza continue to evolve
Frontline Robotics was founded in 2023 around the idea of «robotizing war.» Since then, its products — Zoom, Linza, and Burya — have been in constant development.
«Because our company covers the entire cycle: service, repair, online support, and crew training — we understand very well where our products are strong and where they need improvement. We work on this continuously and clearly see what needs to change,» says Kosolapkin.
Every product has limitations. The real question is whether a company recognizes them and is willing to address them. Not all problems can be solved quickly — some involve extremely complex technological challenges.
A significant portion of the work involves refining critical systems, including video transmission, control, and optical navigation. The R&D team cannot stop — these systems must be improved constantly. There is effectively no ceiling.
This is a never-ending process, as the product must become more reliable, more stable, and more durable. It cannot be paused. Even if it looks from the outside like almost nothing has changed, very serious transformations may be happening under the hood. And this is one of those crucial steps that must take place with every product if it is to remain relevant.
In defense tech, detailed technical updates are rarely shared publicly. It’s a continuous cycle of competition, action, and counteraction, with both sides constantly adapting.
The most important and essentially the only correct ‘release’ of technical changes in this industry is when the product becomes simpler and more intuitive for the user, requires less time to learn, and reduces the risk of crew error.
