Drones? Europe's Automakers Are Taking Orders.

Renault plans to roll out early 2027 production of the Chorus, its first entry into the military drone market. The drone is developed with weapons contractor Turgis Gaillard and assembled across two Renault industrial sites. Engines made at Renault’s Cléon facilities near Rouen will undergo final assembly at the Le Mans factory, which is typically used for chassis frames. The Chorus is described as an ordnance with both offensive and reconnaissance roles, carrying a 500-kilogram payload and an estimated 3,000-kilometer range. The unit price is reported at €120,000. Renault says it does not intend to become a major defense-sector player, with a proposed 10-year state agreement valued at €1 billion and expected output of about 600 drones per month at full production.

"By early 2027, the first models of the “Chorus” will be rolling off assembly lines at the French car manufacturer Renault. It's not a new emissions-free vehicle at an appealing price point-the elusive savior of Europe's once confident automobile sector. Rather, the Chorus is the French brand's first foray into the burgeoning market of military drones. Designed with weapons contractor Turgis Gaillard, the Chorus drone will be put together across two of the carmaker's industrial sites."

"The final product, according to the manufacturers' magazine L'Usine Nouvelle, is an ordnance with dual offensive and reconnaissance capabilities. Lauded in industry circles as a reply to Iran's Shahed drones or compared to Ukraine's Flamingo cruise missiles, the Chorus will purportedly be capable of carrying a 500-kilogram payload with an estimated range of 3,000 kilometers (slightly over 1,864 miles), at a unit price of €120,000."

"Renault management denies that drone production could ever become a pillar of business strategy. The group “does not aim to become a major actor in the defense sector,” it said in a press release this winter, after its drone partnership was approved by employee representatives. For now, the scale of its agreement appears minimal: Renault is said to be broaching a 10-year pact with the French state valued at €1 billion."

"Yet these small steps are part of French President Emmanuel Macron's calls to bring France to a “war economy” footing. Tony Fortin, of the Lyon-based NGO L'Obs"

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