Poland Probes Plot to Torch Drone Factory Supplying Ukraine

Polish prosecutors are investigating an alleged plan to set fire to a factory making military drones for Ukraine. The suspected operation involved recruiting someone to commit sabotage on behalf of a foreign intelligence service. It matters because the facility supports Ukraine’s wartime drone supply, while Poland has warned about Russian sabotage operations since 2022.

The target was a Flytronic facility in Gliwice, southern Poland. Flytronic is owned by WB Group, Poland’s largest privately owned defense manufacturer. A recruiter on Telegram first discussed burning cars with Ukrainian license plates, then proposed the larger factory attack and offered $30,000.

The case has been handed to Poland’s Internal Security Agency, known as ABW. Investigators are examining whether the approach was connected to Russian intelligence activity. The suspected plot follows a fire at another WB Group facility in Skarżysko-Kamienna, which Prime Minister Donald Tusk called an act of sabotage.

Flytronic is a facility owned by WB Group, Poland’s largest privately owned defense manufacturer. Its importance comes from the military equipment it produces for Ukraine’s war effort. The article identifies Flytronic as the maker of FlyEye reconnaissance drones.

FlyEye drones help Ukrainian forces direct artillery strikes. That gives the drones a battlefield role beyond simple observation. The article separately notes that WB Group also produces Warmate attack drones, which are designed to crash into targets and explode.

The suspected arson plot therefore focused on a site connected to military drone production. Prosecutors are investigating whether someone was recruited to attack it for a foreign intelligence service. The investigation was handed to Poland’s Internal Security Agency after a journalist exposed the alleged approach on Telegram.

The suspected recruiter allegedly offered $30,000 for an arson attack on the Flytronic drone factory. That large payment followed an earlier offer to burn cars with Ukrainian license plates. The amount suggests the proposed factory attack was treated as a more significant operation.

The recruiter used the pseudonym Joker and contacted a journalist posing as a Belarusian job seeker. The conversation took place on Telegram. Vot Tak, a TVP World sister channel, investigated the account after its journalist made contact and was offered sabotage work.

Vot Tak traced the Telegram account to a Russian telephone number registered in the Saratov region in southwest Russia. The article does not establish the recruiter’s identity or prove who directed the plot. Polish prosecutors are investigating a suspected recruitment effort carried out on behalf of a foreign intelligence service.

FlyEye and Warmate serve different battlefield purposes. FlyEye is a reconnaissance drone used by Ukrainian forces to direct artillery strikes. Warmate is an attack drone designed to crash into a target and explode. Together, they represent observation and attack capabilities linked to the same Polish defense group.

The article connects FlyEye production directly to Flytronic. It says Flytronic manufactures the reconnaissance drones, while its parent company, WB Group, also produces Warmate attack drones. This distinction matters because the suspected plot targeted a Flytronic facility, not simply an unspecified military site.

These drones are part of Ukraine’s military effort against Russia. The article does not quantify how many drones Ukraine receives or describe individual operations. It does show why the production site matters: one product supports artillery targeting, while another is designed for direct explosive attacks on targets.

A drone factory in Poland matters strategically because it produces equipment used in Ukraine’s war effort. Flytronic manufactures FlyEye reconnaissance drones, which Ukrainian forces use to direct artillery strikes. Disrupting that production could therefore affect a capability connected directly to combat operations.

The wider WB Group connection adds importance. WB Group is Poland’s largest privately owned defense manufacturer and also produces Warmate attack drones. Warmate drones are designed to crash into targets and explode. The suspected attack was aimed at a facility belonging to this defense network.

Poland is also a key military supporter of Kyiv and has warned repeatedly about Russian sabotage on its territory since 2022. The investigation therefore concerns more than one industrial site. It touches Ukraine’s supply of military technology and Poland’s effort to protect defense production from foreign interference.

If a factory supplying drones were successfully attacked, Ukraine could lose or face delays in receiving equipment used during the war. FlyEye drones help direct artillery strikes, while Warmate drones are designed to crash into targets and explode. Damage to production could therefore weaken or interrupt these capabilities.

The article does not state the exact size of the factory’s output or predict a specific battlefield result. It does establish the mechanism of possible harm: an arson attack could damage a facility linked to military drone manufacturing. That would put pressure on a supply line supporting Ukraine.

Poland could also face heightened security concerns. The country has repeatedly warned of Russian sabotage operations since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. The earlier fire at another WB Group facility, which Donald Tusk called sabotage, shows why authorities are treating the alleged plot seriously.

Sabotage is the deliberate damaging or disrupting of property, equipment, or operations. In this case, the suspected act was arson against a factory producing military drones. It matters because sabotage can attack a country’s defense capacity without a conventional military strike.

A foreign intelligence service may use a recruited individual as the person who performs the physical act. The recruiter can approach a potential operative, offer payment, give a target, and communicate through a platform such as Telegram. Here, the recruiter allegedly first offered money to burn cars, then proposed attacking the Flytronic factory for $30,000.

The article links the suspected recruitment to a Russian phone number and says prosecutors are investigating action on behalf of a foreign intelligence service. It does not prove the recruiter’s identity or confirm that the attack occurred. Poland’s ABW is handling the investigation.