Rheinmetall and Destinus to form missile JV
As European states clamour for long-range strike options, Rheinmetall and Destinus have announced plans to form a JV. Based in Germany, the new venture will offer cruise and rocket artillery, but the road to integration is long.
By Sam Cranny-Evans, editor of Calibre Defence, published on April 14, 2026.
Dutch company Destinus and Rheinmetall are planning to launch a new European missile house.
Under plans announced on April 13, the two companies will form a joint venture (JV) in Germany. The venture will aim to produce cruise and rocket artillery for the European and broader global markets.
If approved, the JV will be called Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems and is expected to go live in the second half of 2026. Rheinmetall will own a 51% stake and Destinus the remaining 49%.
“It will manufacture, market, and deliver advanced missile systems. These will include cruise missiles and ballistic rocket artillery,” the press release states. It appears that Destinus will retain its Dutch facility while Rheinmetall will provide Germany-based qualification and production capacity.
“We are combining Rheinmetall’s production capacities and experience in managing large-scale programs with Destinus’s specific technology and system design,” Rheinmetall CEO, Armin Papperger said.
The Destinus CEO, Mikhail Kokorich, added that he sees the real bottleneck in Europe as production, not demand. “Modern conflict is defined by volume and cost-per-effect. Missile systems are evolving from limited-production assets into industrial products,” he said.
The companies anticipate that market demand could reach tens of thousands of systems per year. This could entail hundreds of millions of euros, they state. Destinus is already producing over 2,000 cruise missiles per year, the press release states. And is supporting some requirements in Ukraine.
Company Profile: Destinus
- Headquarters: Netherlands
- Founded: 2021
- CEO: Mikhail Kokorich
- Total Capital Raised: Nearly €400 million
- Strategic Acquisitions: Aerialtronics (Netherlands), Daedalean (Switzerland)
- Primary Focus: Development and industrial-scale manufacturing of autonomous strike systems, air defence interceptors, and cruise missiles.
Destinus is a European defence company that focuses on the rapid development and mass production of autonomous flight systems. It maintains a diverse portfolio including the Hornet interceptor, the Lord long-range effector, and the Ruta cruise missile. By integrating artificial intelligence and modular design, Destinus seeks to provide sovereign defence capabilities for European and allied nations. It currently employs over 700 engineers and specialists across several European facilities to ensure high-volume production of its systems.
The acquisition of Dutch firm Aerialtronics has expanded the company’s expertise in multicopter UAV platforms and AI-driven drone technologies. Furthermore, the purchase of Switzerland-based Daedalean has integrated safety-critical AI and advanced avionics into the existing aerospace product roadmap. These strategic moves reinforce the company’s commitment to building a robust industrial base capable of meeting modern security challenges. Recent financing includes a €50 million bank facility from Commerzbank to support the continued industrialisation of its various flight platforms.
Calibre comment: Missile integration is a looming challenge
There are constraints in missile production, as Kokorich noted. This is not necessarily an inherent flaw of the way that Europe does defence, but a result of the prevailing threat. For 30 years, there has been no need for mass production of any missile type, so production lines are setup to meet that demand. Increasing production costs money. And the private equity raised by companies like Destinus helps to achieve that without needing a government contract. However, alongside production, there is the challenge of platform integration.
At present, 12 European nations are or will be F-35 operators and there will be a fleet of some 600 of the advanced aircraft in Europe by the mid-2030s. As a result, the F-35 will be the primary strike platform for Europe. Moreover, it will be the most survivable against Russia’s air defences, especially when compared to 4th gen platforms. This means that integrating the missiles produced by Rheinmetall Destinus Strike Systems onto the F-35 will likely be an essential requirement. This is a challenging prospect, one that is already delaying full capability for the aircraft that are already in service.
