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Elroy Air selected to provide autonomous aerial cargo delivery as part of new White House program. Ben 03/12/2026 0 59 3 minutes read Elroy Air, the leading U.S.-based developer of autonomous aerial systems for middle-mile logistics, has been selected for the U.S. Department of Transportation's (USDOT) eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). Established under President Trump's Unleashing American Drone Dominance Executive Order, the program is designed to accelerate safe eVTOL and advanced air mobility operations across the United States. Elroy Air was the only OEM with a purpose-built, heavy-payload cargo drone selected for the program, which otherwise has air taxi companies or companies retrofitting legacy aircraft. By prioritizing uncrewed, pod-based logistics over the complexities of human passenger flight, Elroy Air's cargo-focused approach offers unique regulatory pathways and utility for the global energy and shipping sectors. Discover more Video games Elroy Air was selected as part of the State of Louisiana's application, alongside early customer and long-time partner Bristow Group. Under the program, Elroy Air's Chaparral, an autonomous hybrid-electric VTOL drone capable of carrying 300 lbs of cargo up to 300 miles, will be put to work delivering cargo across the Gulf Coast and to energy industry locations throughout Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi. USDOT's announcement specifically calls for the start of operations in 2026, accelerating the path to deploy the Chaparral's autonomous capabilities in high-demand offshore and industrial environments. "Chaparral was selected to define the federal standard for uncrewed heavy-payload logistics. That doesn't happen without a truly mission-ready aircraft and a team that's been doing this work for years," said Elroy Air CEO Dr. Andrew Clare. "This reflects the strength of our partnerships with Bristow Group, the incredible team in Louisiana, and the FAA, as well as our ability to scale rapidly through our work with Kratos. We're grateful to the White House, Secretary Duffy, USDOT, and the FAA for their commitment to American aviation leadership and we're ready to deliver." This selection demonstrates strong federal interest in purpose-built autonomous systems for "middle-mile" aerial delivery. Participation in the eIPP provides Elroy Air with a unique collaborative channel with the FAA to scale heavy-payload cargo systems. Chaparral will be an early participant in large-scale integration into the National Airspace System, decoupled from the challenges of passenger-carrying aircraft. "At Bristow, we're excited to build on our legacy of aviation leadership to usher in a new era of vertical lift operations with Chaparral. Our energy and government services customers are demanding lower risk, higher tempo, and more efficient options to meet the increasing demand for offshore aerial work, including the movement of critical cargo," said Bristow Executive Vice President and Chief Transformation Officer Dave Stepanek. "Louisiana is our core U.S. base of operations to serve the Gulf Coast. We're excited about the opportunities Chaparral creates, enhancing the services we provide to existing customers and opening new markets through interchangeable pods, equipment, and mission profiles." Designed with speed, safety, and operational efficiency in mind, the Chaparral enables next-generation logistics at a fraction of the capital and operational costs of traditional crewed aircraft. From tactical resupply to humanitarian aid, Chaparral enables rapid aerial cargo delivery while keeping personnel out of harm's way. Its autonomous operations ensure critical cargo reaches the point of need safely, securely and reliably. The company has a demand backlog of over 1,000 aircraft across commercial and defense. To meet the demand, the company announced a partnership with Kratos to scale production late last year. Discover more Video games About Elroy Air Elroy Air is developing industry-first autonomous aircraft systems and cutting-edge software to revolutionize express shipping. Deploying innovative hybrid-electric and autonomous vehicle technologies, their vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft transcend traditional airport limitations, unlocking new frontiers in commercial air cargo, humanitarian aid, and military logistics. From agile, low-risk resupply for troops, to dynamic disaster response and firefighting support, to warehouse-to-warehouse express parcel transport, Elroy Air's technology reshapes logistics possibilities. With facilities in Byron, California, Elroy Air is backed by premier venture capital firms including Diamondstream Partners, Catapult Ventures, Marlinspike Partners, Snowpoint Ventures, and Shield Capital. Strategic investment from industry giants like Lockheed Martin Ventures and support from visionary angel investors including early Uber executives drive the company's mission to provide same-day shipping to every person on the planet. I am the owner of Cerebral-overload.com and the Verizon Wireless Reviewer for Techburgh.com. My love of gadgets came from his lack of a Nintendo Game Boy when he was a child. I vowed from that day on to get his hands on as many tech products as possible. My approach to a review is to make it informative for the technofile while still making it understandable to everyone. Ben is a new voice in the tech industry and is looking to make a mark wherever he goes. When not reviewing products, I is also a 911 Telecommunicator just outside of Pittsburgh PA. 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Barq and Elroy Air team up for $200m unmanned aircraft manufacturing plant in Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi smart mobility company Barq Group has teamed up with Elroy Air to develop a manufacturing facility in the emirate for the US logistics firm's unmanned Chaparral cargo aircraft, helping to advance the UAE's autonomous goals. The joint venture will invest $200 million in the project to produce the Chaparral, an uncrewed hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) cargo system, the companies said in a statement on Friday. The development aims to establish local production capacity serving the UAE and wider Middle East and North Africa, where demand for autonomous logistics is growing, they said. The partnership is a "commitment to building a self-sustaining aerospace ecosystem", and is aligned with the Make it in the Emirates campaign and Abu Dhabi's Smart and Autonomous Vehicles Industry cluster, said Ahmed AlMazrui, chief executive of Barq Group. "The massive demand we are seeing from logistics providers across Mena makes it clear that local production is the only way to scale effectively," he said. San Francisco-based Elroy Air said demand for the Chaparral - which has a range of 482km and payload capacity of 136kg - in Mena is "immense", surpassing its initial estimates, chief executive Andrew Clare said. "Abu Dhabi is the ideal strategic hub for our first international manufacturing footprint... reducing lead times for our regional customers [and] ensuring the aircraft is built in the same environment where they will operate," Mr Clare said. The UAE continues to expand its autonomous vehicles industry as it prepares for the future of transport and adheres to global sustainability goals. The Arab world's second biggest economy, which already has driverless taxis on its roads, is encouraging investment. Interest in eVTOLs, touted as significantly reducing travel times in a more environmentally friendly way, continues to grow in the Emirates. In November, the Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Archer Aviation said they were speeding up plans to bring electric air taxis to Abu Dhabi. The UAE capital is also planning to build a network of 10 vertiports as infrastructure for air taxi and eVTOL services. Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority has said the emirate's first aerial taxi vertiport is progressing. California-based Joby Aviation conducted test flights of air taxis in Dubai last year. The UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority expects to complete certification of air taxis by the third quarter of 2026, its director general, Saif Al Suwaidi, told The National in November.