MGI launches SkyShark: a low-cost one-way effector with UK-sovereign propulsion

UK firm MGI Engineering, which has an original background working in the motorsport industry and on Formula 1 racing technology, has officially unveiled SkyShark: a UK-sovereign one-way effector (OWE) platform that the company says places it “at the vanguard of tactical unmanned systems innovation”.

At a live showcase event hosted at Enstone Airfield in Oxfordshire on 11 July 2025 MGI Engineering two SkyShark variants. One of these was fitted with A300 gas turbine engines developed in collaboration with Oxford-based Argive Ltd, thus offering an entirely UK sovereign solution with no reliance on a foreign supply chain. The other was a SkyShark powered by HS125 electric ducted-fan engines produced by Greenjets, another UK company, thus offering a similarly sovereign solution featuring a quiet, fully electric powertrain designed for low-signature missions in high-risk theatres.

MGI describes SkyShark as a medium-range, high-speed OWE drone designed to deliver a decisive deep-strike capability at low cost and high volume. Engineered for autonomous operation in GPS-denied, communications-contested environments using a terrain mapping-based navigation system, SkyShark can deliver 20 kg of modular payload over 250 km at a speed exceeding 450 km/h. The payload would typically be high explosive, but other mission payloads could also be carried, such as an electronic warfare/decoy or intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) fit-out.

Crucially, SkyShark is designed to be affordable for mass production and use, with a low unit cost enabling high-volume deployment. Although all of its components are UK sourced, MGI says it would also allow “aligned countries the opportunity to manufacture SkyShark locally under licence”.

SkyShark drones are able to take off from a short runway, or by using a catapult, rail or rocket-assisted take off method and are designed with a modular, sensor-agnostic architecture to allow customers to decide their preference in terms of payload and guidance systems and to allow rapid in-service iterations.

The SkyShark system is also designed for ease of use, featuring what MGI describes as a “powerful and intuitive operator ground control station interface for planning, mission execution and review”.

Mike Gascoyne, founder and CEO at MGI Engineering, was quoted as saying in a company press release, “In an era of strategic instability, we believe the UK must move fast, think independently and build smart. SkyShark is our contribution to the UK overcoming the challenge of long-range, low-cost and scalable OWEs.

“This platform is the result of British innovation firing on all cylinders, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in autonomous, operational strike capability,” Gascoyne added. “From propulsion to payload, everything we’ve launched today was designed, built and tested on home soil.”

Argive, which specialises in microturbines and other propulsion technologies, developed high-performance gas turbines for SkyShark that offer a compact, efficient and sovereign propulsion system that delivers exceptional thrust-to-weight performance for tactical strike missions, according to MGI.

Rob Joles, Argive’s commercial director, was quoted as saying, “Collaborating with MGI on the SkyShark project is a clear demonstration of what can happen when two high-performance engineering cultures converge. Our advanced metal manufacturing and design technologies enabled a new generation of lightweight, efficient and fully sovereign gas turbines that give SkyShark an unmatched tactical edge at range.”

Greenjets, which partnered with MGI to create the fully electric variant of SkyShark, focused on providing low-signature powerplants that were nevertheless efficient and offered military-grade performance, facilitating a quiet, low-signature platform ideal for ISR and strike missions in high-risk theatres.

Dr Guido Monterzino, CTO at Greenjets, stated, “Our mission at Greenjets is to bring high-performance electric propulsion to the aviation world. This collaboration with MGI Engineering is a celebration of UK innovation and shows what’s possible when bold ideas meet precision execution.

“The electric-powered SkyShark proves that tactical capability doesn’t mean compromising on cost or operational effectiveness,” Monterzino added. “It’s a scalable platform for modern operations and a glimpse of where defence aviation could be heading.”

MGI states that the SkyShark OWE could be available commercially from August 2025.