DSEI 2025: AirKamuy 150 Japanese Expendable Drone Reshaping Anti-Drone Training
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At the DSEI 2025 exhibition, the Japanese company AirKamuy Inc. presented the AirKamuy 150, a fixed-wing drone made from biodegradable cardboard. This model reflects the emergence of low-cost aerial solutions designed to combine endurance, ease of production, and reduced environmental impact. The company highlights its potential in different areas, ranging from reconnaissance and logistics to training and threat simulation.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
The AirKamuy 150 has an endurance of between one and two and a half hours, with an operational speed ranging from 45 to 120 km/h (Picture source: Army Recognition)
The AirKamuy 150 has an endurance of between one and two and a half hours, with an operational speed ranging from 45 to 120 km/h. Its payload capacity reaches 1.5 kg, and its maximum range is set at 150 km. The drone is designed to be assembled in only five minutes from a flat-packed configuration, making it possible to transport more than 500 units in a standard 20-foot container. This approach facilitates logistics and allows for large-scale deployment across different operational theaters.
From an operational perspective, several scenarios are considered. The drone can be used for border surveillance, particularly in areas that are difficult to access where the cost of conventional aerial platforms is restrictive. In asymmetric or high-intensity warfare, its low unit price enables its use in swarms, multiplying vectors and potentially saturating adversary air defense systems. It can also serve in counter-UAS training campaigns, where armed forces seek realistic airborne targets at low cost. The system also has a role in CBRN risk management: test strips attached to the airframe can identify chemical or radiological threats, with results visually confirmed from a distance. In such cases, discarding the drone after the mission reduces the risk of contamination.
The design is based on simple materials, using standard cardboard combined with biodegradable resins. This structure makes production feasible in any cardboard factory, reducing transport distances and supporting large-scale manufacturing. The company states that the unit cost is under 3,000 dollars, less than one-tenth of the price of traditional fixed-wing drones used in Japan, while also offering low-cost spare parts. The endurance, up to four times higher than that of a standard electric multicopter, allows the drone to cover wide areas over extended periods. It is also designed to withstand varied weather conditions, with a water-repellent coating and stability claimed in winds up to 10 m/s.
The current operational context strengthens the relevance of such solutions. Recent conflicts have highlighted the importance of expendable drones in attrition warfare and in saturating air defenses. Low-cost platforms, produced in large numbers and used without recovery concerns, enable armed forces to diversify their vectors while preserving high-end capabilities for critical missions. In military exercises, such drones also provide a flexible tool to test air defense responses and train units to operate in environments saturated with threats. Their potential use in domestic security or disaster management, particularly for detecting hazardous substances, further extends their role beyond the strictly military sphere.
AirKamuy Inc., based in Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, presents this program as an industrial approach focused on standardization and adaptability. Its motto, according to which every cardboard factory can become an arsenal, reflects the intent to turn a civilian industry into a defense production base. This strategy also raises the issue of the rapid proliferation of drones for military or security purposes, as their low cost and ease of reproduction could accelerate their spread worldwide.
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At the DSEI 2025 exhibition, the Japanese company AirKamuy Inc. presented the AirKamuy 150, a fixed-wing drone made from biodegradable cardboard. This model reflects the emergence of low-cost aerial solutions designed to combine endurance, ease of production, and reduced environmental impact. The company highlights its potential in different areas, ranging from reconnaissance and logistics to training and threat simulation.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
The AirKamuy 150 has an endurance of between one and two and a half hours, with an operational speed ranging from 45 to 120 km/h (Picture source: Army Recognition)
The AirKamuy 150 has an endurance of between one and two and a half hours, with an operational speed ranging from 45 to 120 km/h. Its payload capacity reaches 1.5 kg, and its maximum range is set at 150 km. The drone is designed to be assembled in only five minutes from a flat-packed configuration, making it possible to transport more than 500 units in a standard 20-foot container. This approach facilitates logistics and allows for large-scale deployment across different operational theaters.
From an operational perspective, several scenarios are considered. The drone can be used for border surveillance, particularly in areas that are difficult to access where the cost of conventional aerial platforms is restrictive. In asymmetric or high-intensity warfare, its low unit price enables its use in swarms, multiplying vectors and potentially saturating adversary air defense systems. It can also serve in counter-UAS training campaigns, where armed forces seek realistic airborne targets at low cost. The system also has a role in CBRN risk management: test strips attached to the airframe can identify chemical or radiological threats, with results visually confirmed from a distance. In such cases, discarding the drone after the mission reduces the risk of contamination.
The design is based on simple materials, using standard cardboard combined with biodegradable resins. This structure makes production feasible in any cardboard factory, reducing transport distances and supporting large-scale manufacturing. The company states that the unit cost is under 3,000 dollars, less than one-tenth of the price of traditional fixed-wing drones used in Japan, while also offering low-cost spare parts. The endurance, up to four times higher than that of a standard electric multicopter, allows the drone to cover wide areas over extended periods. It is also designed to withstand varied weather conditions, with a water-repellent coating and stability claimed in winds up to 10 m/s.
The current operational context strengthens the relevance of such solutions. Recent conflicts have highlighted the importance of expendable drones in attrition warfare and in saturating air defenses. Low-cost platforms, produced in large numbers and used without recovery concerns, enable armed forces to diversify their vectors while preserving high-end capabilities for critical missions. In military exercises, such drones also provide a flexible tool to test air defense responses and train units to operate in environments saturated with threats. Their potential use in domestic security or disaster management, particularly for detecting hazardous substances, further extends their role beyond the strictly military sphere.
AirKamuy Inc., based in Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture, presents this program as an industrial approach focused on standardization and adaptability. Its motto, according to which every cardboard factory can become an arsenal, reflects the intent to turn a civilian industry into a defense production base. This strategy also raises the issue of the rapid proliferation of drones for military or security purposes, as their low cost and ease of reproduction could accelerate their spread worldwide.
