BERLIN, April 15, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Germany's parliament awarded defence giant Rheinmetall a contract Wednesday to supply attack drones for the national military, a lawmaker told AFP.

The deal with Rheinmetall -- which was not publicly named as a supplier -- follows contracts with defence tech start-ups Stark and Helsing approved by the legislature in February.

Rheinmetall's contract to deliver attack drones is worth roughly 298 million euros ($352 million) "if quality standards are met", lawmaker Andreas Schwartz from the centre-left SPD, who sits on the parliament's budget committee, told AFP.

"Germany is pursuing a consistent approach to drone procurement and learning from Ukraine's experience," Schwartz said.

The defence ministry Wednesday announced a framework deal to acquire drones "from a third manufacturer" but did not specify the size of the deal or name the company.

The attack drones to be delivered are also known as loitering munitions. They are equipped with explosive payloads and can remain airborne for extended periods before striking targets identified with the help of onboard sensors.

The orders represent the first times Germany's armed forces -- known as the Bundeswehr -- have purchased attack drones.

Not long ago, lethal unmanned drones were seen as highly controversial in Germany, with sharp political debates over whether the military should be allowed to acquire such weapons.

But the threat from Russia following the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the extensive use of drones in the fighting there, have largely pushed aside such concerns.

The orders with all three initial manufacturers aim to equip a German armoured bridge being deployed to NATO's eastern flank in Lithuania "with a full suite of reconnaissance and engagement capabilities" by 2027, according to a defence ministry statement.

Berlin-based Stark Defence and Munich-based Helsing in February received approval from lawmakers for contracts with an initial value of 536 million euros.

At the time, Rheinmetall did not yet have a functional prototype.

The defence ministry said all three companies will be treated equally, with a process of parallel development, field trials, training and iterative improvements aimed at "saving time and rapidly introducing this important new capability".

The Dusseldorf-based Rheinmetall has grown rapidly in recent years as European military spending has surged.

Rheinmetall is also seen as an increasingly powerful political force in Berlin, and since February has managed to put its attack drone system back in contention for a contract with the Bundeswehr.

"The aim is to spread procurement across various suppliers at the national level," Schwartz told AFP. "This safeguards procurement capacity and promotes competition and innovation."