A female-led drone company based in San Francisco, California is scaling up the hiring of testing staff after raising the funding to develop an autonomous air cargo eVTOL
MightyFly has raised US$5.1 million in seed funding to help hire and produce its eVTOL aircraft, the MF-100. It is also seeking business partnerships for proof-of-concept delivery service operations.
The company is developing the MF-100, a hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to have a cargo capacity of 100 lbs (45kg), a cruising speed of 150mph (240km/h), and range of 600 miles (965km) and a capability to make multiple deliveries during the same flight. MightyFly also plans to develop a larger aircraft with a cargo capacity of 500 lbs (225kg).
The MF-100 has received a Special Airworthiness Certificate from the FAA, and test flights are being performed in California. The company aims to achieve FAA Part 135 certification, and airworthiness certifications in other markets, like Australia and Asia.
MightyFly aircraft are being develop to use Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) in and out and operate withing Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) systems in development. The company said they will also be supervised by a human operator in MightyFly’s own tower.
Co-founder and CEO of Mighty Fly Manal said, “MightyFly marries economies of scale with autonomy to completely disrupt logistics, making quick, cost-efficient, and carbon-neutral cargo accessible to all businesses and all areas.”
Habib is the only woman to lead a drone company designing and manufacturing its own drones to operate a logistics service. “For me, aerospace is more than a profession, it’s a passion—and a way to transform lives for the better,” she said.
“Since I was a child, I’ve dreamt of the possibilities to advance human civilization through the power of flight. Today, I’m making it happen.”
Manal Habib and Scott Parker, MightyFly
MightyFly was founded by Habib and co-founder Scott Parker. The two met while working at drone medical product delivery company Zipline, where Habib led flight controls and Parker was a senior mechanical engineer. They founded MightyFly to meet a need for a larger autonomous aircraft with a greater cargo capacity.
John Formisano, a retired FedEx executive, formerly VP of Global Vehicles, and an advisor to MightyFly said, “MightyFly’s range and payload are unprecedented in the expedited delivery space today. Most existing delivery platforms carry much lighter payloads much shorter distances.”
