"If Not for the Invasion, I Would Never Have Done This"... 34-Year-Old Woman Goes from Furniture Maker to Missile Developer

WSJ spotlights Firepoint CEO: From furniture business to war leader
"FP-1 drones carry out 60% of strikes inside Russia"
Cruise missiles mass-produced at one-sixth the cost of the Tomahawk

The head of a Ukrainian furniture company who once evacuated her mother under gunfire has, after four years, come to oversee weapons development at one of the country’s leading defense companies.

Irina Terekh, CEO and CTO of Firepoint. Instagram

On August 16 (local time), Yonhap News, citing the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), reported that “the Russia-Ukraine war, now in its fifth year, has completely transformed the lives of local citizens.” The outlet profiled Irina Terekh, 34, CEO and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Ukrainian defense company Firepoint. Previously, she operated a furniture company that produced outdoor benches and flowerpots, aspiring to design public urban spaces.

The turning point came in February 2022, during Russia’s invasion, when Russian forces advanced on Bucha, near Kyiv, where her mother was staying. Russian troops later became infamous for perpetrating a large-scale civilian massacre in Bucha. After this experience, Terekh entered the business of manufacturing concrete anti-tank barriers. That same year, she was recruited by Firepoint founder Denis Shtilerman and began leading the development of long-range drones and missiles.

Terekh taught herself the operating principles of missiles, studying manuals from the Soviet era and hiring a rocket scientist in his nineties as a consultant to continue her research. Thanks to her involvement, the time required for the company to produce drone wings dropped dramatically from six days to just two hours and 30 minutes.

FP-1 drone launched for combat mission in Ukraine. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

The FP-1 drone developed by Firepoint boasts a range of 2,100 miles (about 3,450 km). According to Terekh, this drone accounts for about 60% of strikes on deep targets inside Russia, such as oil refineries and ammunition depots. Approximately 100 FP-1 drones are produced daily, each costing $55,000 (around 78 million won).

The FP-5 cruise missile “Flamingo,” equipped with a 1,134 kg warhead and co-developed by Terekh, is priced at about $600,000 per unit (roughly 850 million won)—less than one-sixth the price of the American Tomahawk missile (around $3.5 million). The “Flamingo” name was given during the prototype launch phase after the airframe was painted pink to make it easier to collect debris. Some employees derisively remarked, “Because a woman is leading a defense company, we now have a pink missile,” but today, the Flamingo is considered the most powerful asset supporting Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities.

Firepoint has also embarked on developing its next generation of weapons. The FP-9 ballistic missile, with a range of 850 km, is set for its maiden flight this fall, and development continues on the FP-7.x as a cost-effective interceptor to substitute for the U.S.-made Patriot system. In a recent interview with U.S. military news site The War Zone on August 3, Terekh said Firepoint is in talks with German defense company Diehl Defence for joint production of the Flamingo missile, adding that “Diehl was the one who first proposed the negotiations.”

Terekh told the WSJ, “If it weren’t for Russia’s invasion, I would never have entered the weapons business.” The WSJ also reported that Terekh is hardly alone in this path: “A former florist is now assembling drones, an aerobatic pilot has become a military pilot, and toy factories are now producing replica weapons.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.