It is a production line, and this one is being built in Kuldīgas novads. LAT Defence manufactures fibre-optic spool systems and related FPV UAV components in Latvia — resilient European supply through local production.
Single-mode fibre to ITU-T G.657.A2. Deployment speed from LAT Defence test data. The disc-faced variant is produced to order in a customer's livery; the standard product ships unbranded.
Electronic warfare severs the radio control link and the aircraft drops. A fibre-optic tether replaces that link with a filament of glass: the control and video path carries no radio signal, so it cannot be jammed, spoofed or intercepted. It is a consumable — every sortie spends its spool.
The claim is immunity of the link, not invisibility of the aircraft. The airframe still emits, the tether can be seen and it can be cut. What cannot be done is take the link away.
Designed and built in Kuldīgas novads, validated in operational use in Ukraine, supplied from inside the European Union. Each stage of that sentence is a document somebody can ask to see.
LAT Defence manufactures in Latvia. It did not fight in Ukraine. What the record contains is a signed instrument, a recorded environment and a maturity level — each of which can be checked.
A 25 km fibre-optic spool system for FPV UAVs. There is no radio link to jam, spoof or intercept — the control path is a physical filament of glass.
Matte-black cone-and-cylinder body with a metal end fitting. A flat disc-faced variant carries partner branding on the face, produced to order.
| Designation | FO-25 |
|---|---|
| Fibre length | 25 km |
| Fibre type | G.657.A2ITU-T single-mode, bend-insensitive |
| Deployment speed | up to 120 km/hLAT Defence test data |
| Media converter | 1490 / 1550 nm |
| Maturity | TRL 9Validated in operational use |
| Application | FPV UAV integration |
| Branding | Partner marking availableDisc face produced to order |
The FO-25 is a component for unmanned systems. Supply is subject to Latvian and European Union export-control law under Regulation (EU) 2021/821, to national licensing and to end-user certification. Classification work is in progress; the reference will be published here when it is issued.
The full technical pack — attenuation and macrobend loss budget, coating diameter, an OTDR trace and a serialised certificate of conformity — is issued to identified organisations on request.
Request the datasheetElectronic warfare severs the radio link between operator and aircraft. A fibre-optic spool replaces that link with glass, so the control and video path carries no radio signal. It is a consumable: every sortie spends its spool. The immunity is the link's, not the aircraft's — the airframe still emits and the tether can be cut.
| Housing | Printed in-houseTo tolerance, matched to the airframe |
|---|---|
| Duct body | D150 round plastic |
| Optical fibre | 25 km G.657.A2Wound at constant tension |
| Media converter | 1490 / 1550 nm |
| Terminations | Pigtails, sleeves, connectorSpliced and terminated by hand |
| Verification | Optical loss, every unitMeasured against a numeric threshold |
Six operations on one site. What arrives is a commodity — bare single-mode fibre, a duct body, an optical converter, terminations. What leaves is a qualified system: sealed, verified, integration-ready.
A 25 km filament has to pay out behind a moving aircraft without a break, a kink or a loss of return. That comes from equipment held to a tolerance and from people who know what the equipment is doing — and the two are not separable. The value LAT Defence adds is conversion capacity inside Europe, on a line that can be scheduled and audited.
LAT Defence manufactures in Latvia. It did not fight in Ukraine. The validation is a named counterparty, a signed instrument, a recorded environment and a maturity level — and every line of it can be checked.
A country does not own a capability it cannot manufacture. What LAT Defence supplies is not a spool — it is the fact that the spool is made in Kuldīgas novads rather than bought from a supplier who can stop selling.
| Facility | Kuldīgas novads, LatviaSite secured |
|---|---|
| Premises | 164 m²Production and test |
| Housing production | Additive, in-houseHeld to tolerance |
| Winding | Specialised, tension-controlled |
| Verification | Splice · polishing · optical power |
| Design capacity, one shift | 528 / month |
| Planned output, one shift | 500 / month94.7% of single-shift capacity |
| Design capacity, two shifts | 1,056 / month |
| Planned output, two shifts | 1,000 / month |
| Staff, one shift to two | 11 → 20 |
| Further plant needed to double | None |
Product maturity and manufacturing maturity are different things and this page keeps them apart. The FO-25 is proven; the line that will build it at series volume is being commissioned. Progress against the four steps above is reported to customers on request.
Optical fibre lead times moved out through 2026 — twenty weeks for large-volume buyers, up to a year for smaller ones — and the deep supply sits outside Europe. Hyperscale data-centre construction, telecom build-out and drone consumption now compete for the same preform capacity.
European production can be inspected, certified and planned against. That is the concrete form of holding your own supply: not a preference for European industry, but a delivery date somebody can be held to.
Europe let an industrial base run down while the threat did not, and is now rebuilding it. This is recovery of something lost rather than a display of strength — which is the more accurate description, and the more useful one.
A production line is a group of people who turn up to it. These are the three you would deal with, and the count of everyone else.
Law, banking and defence technology. Owns export control, sanctions screening and dual-use compliance — the classification work behind every shipment.
Primes, ministries and unmanned-systems manufacturers. Represents GDA Baltic / Global Drone Academy in Latvia, and is the first point of contact for integration enquiries and sample requests.
Company governance, contracting and delivery across Luxembourg, Latvia, Scandinavia and the United States. Board member of GPP 3D in Kuldīgas novads, where the housings are printed.
The FO-25 was designed and built in Latvia, then tested and validated in Ukraine. The engineering team earned its operating experience under near-combat conditions and brought it back to Kuldīgas novads. LAT Defence manufactures; it did not fight there.
| Staff, first shift | 11Kuldīgas novads, one shift |
|---|---|
| Make-up | 9 production · 2 overhead |
| Second shift adds | 9No further plant required |
| Premises | 164 m²Site secured |
| Operating experience | Ukraine, 2026Engineering team, near-combat conditions |
| Company origins | LAT Security · GPP 3D · GDA Baltic |
The line is in Kuldīgas novads and can be visited. State the intended integration and quantity, and Valdemārs will arrange it.
Arrange a visitEnquiries from ministries, prime contractors and unmanned-systems manufacturers are handled directly by the partnerships team.
The FO-25 is a component for unmanned systems. Supply is subject to Latvian and European Union export-control law, to national licensing and to end-user certification. Enquiries are screened against sanctions and end-use rules before any technical documentation is issued.
