US Army Selects Kraus Hamdani Fully Electric K1000ULE Drone for a Program of Record, After an Air Forces Central Contract Worth Up to 270 Million Dollars, With the Aircraft Having Flown More Than 75 Hours Nonstop in 2023 and Weighing 21 to 55 Pounds
The United States Army selected Kraus Hamdani Aerospace fully electric K1000ULE Group 2 drone for a budgeted program of record after an earlier contract worth up to 270 million dollars.
The Army has selected the K1000ULE, a fully electric Group 2 drone made by California company Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, for a program of record, and the selection follows a United States Air Forces Central contract to the company worth up to 270 million dollars earlier this year.
A program of record is a budgeted, long-term acquisition, so the selection signals sustained Army demand for the drone rather than a one-time purchase, the Air Forces Central contract carries a ceiling of up to 270 million dollars, the K1000ULE flew more than 75 hours nonstop in 2023 and weighs 21 to 55 pounds, and the number of aircraft the Army plans to procure has not been disclosed.
Under the award, Kraus Hamdani will deliver K1000ULE aircraft for Army reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition, the drone takes off and lands vertically without a runway, and solar panels on its wings recharge its batteries in flight.
The 1st Multi-Domain Task Force used the drone during Static Focus 3 in Washington state in March 2025 and Exercise Salaknib 25 in the Philippines in May 2025, the aircraft is already listed on the Defense Innovation Unit Blue UAS lists, which clear drones for defense use, and the Army announced the program of record selection on November 13.
Source: U.S. Army
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：一架太阳能无人机的示意渲染图，资料图，非 K1000ULE 实机照片。。Wikideas1，CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: 一架太阳能无人机的示意渲染图，资料图，非 K1000ULE 实机照片。 Wikideas1，CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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