Volatus Aerospace Inc. has announced plans to establish a dedicated innovation centre and drone manufacturing hub at Montréal–Mirabel International Airport to strengthen sovereign defence capacity.
The project, titled the Volatus Mirabel Innovation Centre and Drone Manufacturing Hub, is designed to support the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) and NATO requirements. This initiative aligns with recent federal priorities to reinvest in domestic industrial resilience and secure supply chains. The company will operate within a 200,000-square-foot secure facility located in the Mirabel Innovation Zone.
This manufacturing hub is intended to enable the serial production of proprietary Volatus drone platforms alongside the licensed manufacture of partner systems. The facility is designed for scalability and efficiency, ensuring all production meets NATO-aligned requirements and Canadian end-use needs. Operations will be managed through a domestic supply chain featuring full configuration control, quality assurance, and compliance with Canadian and allied export regulatory frameworks.
Hubert Bolduc, President, Investissement Québec International, commented, “Investissement Québec International is proud to support Volatus in establishing its innovation center in Mirabel, at the heart of Québec’s aerospace ecosystem. This announcement underscores the value of our efforts to attract and assist companies that actively contribute to the vitality of one of the most dynamic sectors of our economy.”
The establishment of the hub follows several federal moves to bolster uncrewed systems, including the 2025 launch of the Defence Investment Agency and a commitment to reach a defence spending target of 2% of GDP. Recent government actions have also included $500 million in NATO-aligned support for Ukraine and the advancement of various Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) and Counter-UAS (C-UAS) programmes.
Glen Lynch, CEO of Volatus Aerospace Inc, added, “By combining an Innovation Centre for rapid integration and qualification with a dedicated Manufacturing Hub for serial production, Mirabel will become our anchor for Canadian-made, defence-grade drones. Our focus is to accelerate readiness for CAF missions, ISR, maritime, Arctic, and base security, while ensuring interoperable capability for NATO partners and a resilient Canadian supply chain.”
Lynch also stated, “These actions confirm that demand for drone capability is accelerating across CAF and NATO missions. Mirabel positions Volatus to respond decisively with Canadian production, allied interoperability, and a secure supply chain.”
Volatus Aerospace intends for the Mirabel facility to position the company to respond to accelerating demand for drone capabilities across both domestic and international missions.
