Poland is advancing efforts to localize production of 70mm Hydra rockets through a new partnership with American defense firms General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems and Paramount Enterprises International. Under the agreement, Polish Armaments Group subsidiary Nitro-Chem will begin assembling Hydra rockets at its Bydgoszcz facility using parts and components supplied by General Dynamics.
The initial assembly phase is expected to evolve into a full-scale domestic manufacturing and logistics center involving Poland’s broader industrial supply chain. The initiative is intended to provide the Polish Armed Forces with a dependable source of Hydra rockets for its AH-64 Apache attack helicopter fleet, particularly during wartime or periods of supply disruption.
Poland is also exploring the possibility of using the future production hub to support the requirements of allied countries, potentially expanding the country’s role in NATO-linked defense manufacturing. The project aligns with Warsaw’s ongoing efforts to deepen defense cooperation with the United States while strengthening its own industrial and sustainment capabilities.
The agreement follows earlier Apache-related collaboration between Poland and the US defense sector. Earlier this year, Wojskowe Zakłady Lotnicze Nr 1 partnered with Lockheed Martin to maintain key Apache helicopter systems at a facility in Łódź, including advanced electro-optical targeting equipment and fire-control radar technologies.
The 70mm Hydra rockets, produced by General Dynamics, can be equipped with BAE Systems’ APKWS laser-guidance kit, converting them into cost-effective precision-guided munitions capable of engaging aerial and ground targets. The US military has tested APKWS-equipped Hydra rockets on a range of platforms such as the Apache helicopter, F-15E Strike Eagle fighter, and MQ-9A Reaper drone.
In operational deployments, APKWS-guided rockets have been used by the US Air Force and US Navy against Houthi drone threats in the Red Sea. Reports published in late 2025 also indicated that Ukrainian F-16 fighter jets had been observed carrying the guided rockets for counter-drone operations against Russian unmanned systems.
