Elroy Air Timeline

Events

• 2026-07-29 - Capability - Elroy Air completes three unattended Chaparral delivery modes under U.S. Army contract - Chaparral completed hover airdrop, forward-flight airdrop and autonomous ground-delivery modes. The work was performed under a U.S. Army contract for unattended logistics. The next programme phase calls for Army field exercises using the three delivery… - source: elroyair.com
• 2026-07-20 - Production Milestone - Kratos expands Sacramento line for late-2026 Chaparral production - Kratos is expanding Sacramento capacity and expects to add more than 50 employees as Chaparral production ramps. The autonomous hybrid-electric VTOL is designed to carry more than 500 lb over distances of up to 450 miles. Kratos will fulfil U.S. customer… - source: kratosdefense.com
• 2026-06-26 - Market Signal - Elroy Air signs SPAC deal with Columbus Circle Capital Corp II - The transaction is expected to list the combined company in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to approvals and closing conditions. Elroy said proceeds would support commercial-scale production of Chaparral autonomous cargo drones with Kratos. The company… - source: businesswire.com
• 2026-03-11 - Regulatory - Chaparral selected for U.S. eVTOL Integration Pilot Program - The planned programme covers cargo operations across Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi. Target locations include Gulf Coast and energy-industry sites. Elroy Air was the programme's only purpose-built heavy-payload cargo-drone OEM. - source: elroyair.com
• 2026-01-08 - Partnership - Barq Group and Elroy Air sign initial Abu Dhabi Chaparral manufacturing JV agreement - The framework covers a planned Abu Dhabi facility for Chaparral manufacturing and services in the MENA region. The JV is intended to support commercial and humanitarian customers after required approvals. Elroy and Barq plan initial UAE flight operations in… - source: elroyair.com
• 2025-12-18 - Demonstration - Elroy Air completes first airport-to-airport Chaparral cargo delivery - A first airport-to-airport cargo delivery was completed using the hybrid-electric Chaparral VTOL aircraft. The December 10 flight carried 213 lb over 2.6 miles in Byron, California and reached approximately 60 mph before landing at a second location.… - source: elroyair.com
• 2025-09-23 - Production Milestone - Elroy Air names Kratos exclusive U.S. manufacturer for Chaparral - A five-year strategic manufacturing agreement names Kratos as exclusive U.S. manufacturing partner for the Chaparral cargo drone. The agreement is framed around expected high-volume production of the hybrid-electric autonomous VTOL cargo drone. Initial… - source: kratosdefense.com
• 2025-08-14 - Demonstration - Chaparral autonomously transitions to 70 mph wingborne flight - The aircraft reached a maximum speed of 70 mph. Forward flight used up to four times less power than vertical flight. The flights established the technical basis for longer point-to-point missions. - source: elroyair.com
• 2025-01-14 - Funding - Elroy Air completes funding first close and names Andrew Clare CEO - Shield Capital, Snowpoint Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Milano Investment Partners, DiamondStream Partners and Levitate Capital participated. The financing was allocated to Chaparral productization. Clare brought vehicle-program experience across… - source: elroyair.com
• 2023-11-12 - Demonstration - Chaparral completes first turbogenerator-hybrid-electric VTOL flight - Elroy Air described it as the first flight of a turbogenerator-hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft. The aircraft used distributed electric propulsion and a turbogenerator-battery architecture. The flight began an envelope-expansion campaign covering hover… - source: elroyair.com
• 2023-09-05 - Commercial Order - Bristow secures five early Chaparral delivery positions - The five positions covered some of the first commercially certified aircraft planned off the production line. Bristow planned international logistics, healthcare and energy applications. The deposit-backed step was more concrete than the companies' 2022… - source: elroyair.com
• 2023-01-11 - Commercial Order - LCI commits to up to 40 Chaparral aircraft and deposits on first 20 - Elroy Air said its aggregate aircraft demand exceeded $2 billion and 900 systems after the agreement. LCI planned to make Chaparral available through its aviation-financing platform. Elroy Air also moved flight-test operations to a 7,000-square-foot hangar… - source: elroyair.com
• 2022-07-13 - Market Signal - Bristow signs Chaparral purchase letter of intent - The LOI was expected to be replaced by a separate purchase agreement. Bristow planned to combine its vertical-flight and UAS operating experience with Chaparral. Elroy Air reported agreements covering 900 aircraft across commercial, defence and humanitarian… - source: elroyair.com
• 2022-03-30 - Partnership - FedEx plans Chaparral cargo-drone testing with Elroy Air - The collaboration focused on autonomous aerial cargo movement for logistics networks. The program linked Elroy Air Chaparral testing with FedEx Express middle-mile operations. - source: elroyair.com
• 2022-01-26 - Product Launch - Elroy Air unveils Chaparral cargo VTOL - Chaparral was designed around autonomous cargo movement rather than passenger transport. The aircraft targets logistics routes that are hard to serve with road transport or conventional aviation. The product gives Elroy Air a concrete offering for warehouse… - source: elroyair.com
• 2021-11-15 - Commercial Order - AYR Logistics commits to purchase up to 100 Chaparral aircraft - AYR planned to use Chaparral for food, shelter, medicine, vaccine and equipment delivery. The agreement was signed in October 2021 and announced at the Dubai Air Show. The commitment covered autonomous hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft for remote operations… - source: elroyair.com
• 2021-08-03 - Funding - Elroy Air raises $40M Series A for Chaparral development - Catapult Ventures, DiamondStream Partners, Side X Side Management, Shield Capital Partners and Precursor Ventures also participated. The company planned to complete pre-production aircraft, advance certification and begin flight validation with U.S. Air… - source: elroyair.com
• 2021-01-14 - Partnership - Elroy Air and NASA partner on autonomous cargo-aircraft integration - The work covered collision avoidance, flight-path management and two-way network flight-plan communications. NASA planned to supply simulation scenarios and interface details. The partners intended to demonstrate integrated scenarios with Chaparral flights. - source: elroyair.com
• 2020-12-18 - Contract Award - U.S. Air Force awards Elroy Air Phase III SBIR for Chaparral - The work covered operational test and evaluation of the aircraft and its subsystems. The contract created a path toward potential Air Force acquisition. Elroy Air had begun working with the Air Force under a Phase II SBIR in 2019. - source: elroyair.com
• 2019-08-28 - Demonstration - Elroy Air completes first full-scale Chaparral prototype flight - The flight took place at Camp Roberts, California. The prototype validated the full-scale VTOL system before later transition and autonomous-flight campaigns. Elroy Air identified autonomy, transition and forward flight as the next test phases. - source: elroyair.com