StarStarling
The original Luftschar project: a bolt-on module that turns off-the-shelf FPV drones into coordinated swarms, using UWB relative positioning instead of GNSS.
From Luftschar
Turn off-the-shelf FPV drones into coordinated swarms.
Bolt-on leader-follower module for standard FPV airframes. UWB relative positioning, zero GNSS reliance, and modular interceptor integration for GPS-denied and jammed EW environments.
The Luftschar swarm module is a leader–follower unit that bolts onto existing FPV drones — no airframe redesign, no new aircraft. Attach it and the drones coordinate themselves: cheap, expendable airframes become a decentralised strike force that flies itself.
A short-range UWB network gives every drone its position within the formation with meter-level accuracy — independent of GNSS availability.
Followers track the leader through relative UWB measurements. Decentralised mission execution means there is no single point of failure to shoot down.
Swarm guidance keeps working when GPS is denied or degraded — precisely the condition in which most drone operations fail.
Any FPV drone
bolts onto airframes you already fly
Meter-level
formation accuracy in the air
0 satellites
needed to hold the formation
From single drone to swarm in four steps
The module closes the loop between cheap airframes and coordinated behaviour — each step works without GNSS.
Attach
Bolt the swarm module onto any existing FPV airframe. No redesign, no new drone — the airframes you already buy become swarm nodes.
Locate
The UWB mesh measures each drone's position relative to its neighbours — meter-level accuracy with no satellite lock required.
Follow
Leader–follower guidance holds formation geometry while the leader flies the mission profile; followers react to relative measurements, not absolute fixes.
Execute
Decentralised mission execution under GPS denial and EW pressure — a single-operator human-in-the-loop keeps the swarm on task.
From bench to battlefield — the goal chain
Every step is measured the same way, so what we prove in the lab is what flies in the field.
TRL 4 — simulation core + UWB bench
The swarm logic runs end-to-end in simulation, and a physical UWB bench reproduces the same behaviour on real hardware.
BraveTechEU DefTech Forges — application in
Application submitted to the 2nd edition of the BraveTechEU DefTech Forges call (EUR 120,000 prize per winning team). The swarm module is the product we are taking to the Forge.
Field-scale swarm trials at the Forge
Live military environment, supervised flight testing and controlled jamming — the same behaviour we measure in the lab, now proven in the field.
EDA Phase II Operational Experimentation
Continued path to EDA Phase II — worth up to EUR 750,000 — with national armed forces as end-users: TRL step-up on swarm autonomy, sensor-to-shooter integration and resilient multi-drone coordination.
One system, three layers
Swarm autonomy on top, anti-Shahed interception underneath — integrated into one control system.
- UWB relative positioning — meter-level formation accuracy
- GNSS-independent operation (GPS-denied / jamming resilient)
- Leader–follower decentralised architecture
- Bolt-on to existing FPV airframes
- TRL 4 — simulation + physical UWB bench validated
- Miniature onboard radar — all-weather detection
- 400 m range · 3 W · 200 g miniature radar payload
- Autonomous slow-speed engagement mode
- Manual high-speed quadcopter intercept mode
- Shahed-shaped fixed-wing fighter (concept)
- No airframe replacement — module attaches to stock FPV drones
- Single-operator human-in-the-loop control
- Identical measurement approach from bench to field
- Repeatable, reproducible test results on every build
- Field validation at BraveTechEU DefTech Forges, Nov 2026
GNSS-denied operation
EW resilient guidance
Bolt-on deployment
Proven bench-to-field
Other Luftschar projects
A Mavic-class reconnaissance drone for Ukrainian units: it keeps flying under electronic warfare, reports straight into Ukrainian C2 and is repaired in the field.
Open SchwanA long-range FPV drone from DroneAid Collective. Specifications will be published once they are confirmed.
Open VogelAn unmanned ground vehicle (UGV). Its scope and specifications are still being defined.
Open OstrichAn autonomous interceptor drone with a hand launcher, from DroneAid Collective. It builds on the anti-Shahed interceptor work; the design is still being defined.
Open Falke