The construction of giant drones can become large-scale industry in Åtvidaberg

The international interest is great for the giant drones from Åtvidaberg, says the company's manager Claes Drougge.

- This is a "game changer".

This will be able to affect everything in our society, that you can now use unmanned vehicles in the same way as you use helicopters today.

He says that their giant drone costs between one and ten million kroner, depending on what equipment is to be on it and that they now use internal combustion engines to be able to have a longer flight time.

The feature above tells us how the drones will be used and we will see pictures from test flights.

Facit's large factory must be expanded

Claes Drougge's hopes are that the drones will be able to be manufactured in Åtvidaberg, even though there will be orders for many.

His company is located in Facit's old factory, which he bought 10 years ago.

He says that between 20 and 30 percent of the premises were rented then, but that the 50 thousand square meters are no longer enough.

The premises are packed, so now he plans to expand by another around 10,000 square meters

Water drones have become a success

In part of the factory, yellow underwater robots are manufactured, which were also created by Drougge's company.

They are mainly used for research and he says that they have sold 200 such to 17 different countries, and that the idea is that the air drones in the future will be able to fly away with the water drones and place them in the oceans, where they will perform missions.

Underwater drones are laid in a pool in the factory Photo: SVT / Carl Bruno Tersmeden

Drones are the future

Test flights are made at Västervik Airport, but it is still a bit unclear how such large drones will be allowed to be used in Sweden, and whether they will be allowed to carry people, for example.

Claes Drougge is convinced that there will be a lot of drone traffic in the future, and tells what he heard at a conference:

- There was a man who said that everyone talks about how to adapt drones to air traffic, but one should not turn to the question and think about how we should adapt today's flight system to the drones.