2026 could be a breakout year for drone companies, as industries across sectors move to execute on long-anticipated plans to shift toward unmanned operations in construction, logistics, agriculture, and much more.
Shares of drone companies as a group are already off to a promising start this year, with the REX Drone ETF (NASDAQ: DRNZ) already up by about 7% year-to-date (YTD).
Within this burgeoning industry, tiny $41-million firm Draganfly Inc. (NASDAQ: DPRO) could be worth watching in particular.
Despite its small size, Draganfly's drones have already proven attractive for military applications both domestically and abroad. The firm is engaging in strategic partnerships to leverage its influence beyond its capacity on its own.
Further, Draganfly's rapid revenue growth (more than 14% year-over-year in the last reported quarter), competitive cash position, and plans for expansion position it well to continue to capitalize on opportunities.
Partnership With Air Force Is Light on Details, But Promising Nonetheless
The primary and most recent catalyst for investors to move on DPRO shares may be Draganfly's early-February announcement that it will provide key drones and training services to U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command units in partnership with DelMar Aerospace. While the company did not include specifics about the value of the contract or other terms, investors may still see the news as proof that Draganfly's drones have risen above those of competitors for certain essential Air Force operations.
The nature of the training will be to prepare drone operators to employ uncrewed systems in a variety of environments, suggesting that the federal government may expect to continue to partner with Draganfly in the future outside of training scenarios as well.
International Defense Applications Continue to Build
Outside of the U.S. military, Draganfly is also gaining traction with other governments around the world. The company has seen significant success in the Asia-Pacific region in recent months, beginning with a November contract through an unnamed established defense contract for its Commander 3XL drone systems for an international military application. Draganfly followed up in December 2025 with an announcement that it would partner with Babcock International Group and Critical Infrastructure Technologies to further expand into the region.
Draganfly is also seeing success in Europe thanks to its partnership with Search and Rescue Sweden to provide tools and services relating to missing-person recoveries, wilderness rescues, and police missions. That announcement came in mid-January after the company had already completed joint flight testing and validation with its partners.
Like the U.S. Air Force announcement, all of these reports are slim on details about the financial impact of these contracts for Draganfly and its investors. In that way, investors will likely have to wait until the company reports its next earnings in March for a fuller picture of the implications. In the meantime, those optimistic about the trajectory of Draganfly's international business might consider buying prior to this earnings confirmation.
Production Ramp-Up in Motion
Draganfly is also preparing to meet an anticipated surge in demand from military partners by ramping up its production capacity to reach $100 million in 2026, with plans to continue to build on that as well. The company is also building in protections around tariffs, manufacturing and delivery, supply chain concerns, and other factors that should allow it to continue to produce without interruption amid changing external environments.
A 20-fold increase in Draganfly's production is vital to scaling its operations, and the prospect of additional new military contracts could achieve just that. This may be one reason why analysts are increasingly taking notice of the small drone name.
With a new bullish rating from Northland Securities in January, all four Wall Street analysts reviewing DPRO shares in the last year view them positively.
They also expect the stock price to increase by over 120%, based on a consensus price target of $16.75. If the company can indeed capitalize on rising interest from military customers and maintain its sales growth trajectory amid risks, including dilution potential and continued profitability struggles, investors getting in now may be well rewarded in the months to come.
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The article "Draganfly Is Becoming a Key Defense Drone Partner—Faster Than Expected" first appeared on MarketBeat.
