SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 18, 2025--
Elroy Air, the leading developer of autonomous aerial systems for middle-mile logistics and military resupply, announced today that it successfully completed its first point A to point B cargo delivery using the first-of-its-kind drone, Chaparral.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251218529702/en/
Elroy Air is redefining autonomous cargo transport with the Chaparral — an advanced vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft built to carry up to 300 pounds of cargo across 300 miles without a crew onboard. Chaparral was engineered with a hybrid-electric powertrain to meet the needs of our commercial and defense customers, with high utilization, no charging infrastructure required, and increased range.
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 piloted helicopters. From tactical resupply to humanitarian aid, Chaparral enables rapid aerial cargo delivery while keeping personnel out of harm’s way. Its autonomous operations enhance mission resilience by ensuring critical cargo reaches the point of need safely, securely and reliably.
During the historic milestone flight on December 10th, the hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone autonomously carried 213 lbs over a flight distance of 2.6 miles in Byron, California. The aircraft took off vertically, accelerated to a speed of approximately 60 mph and then performed a vertical landing at a second location half a mile away, where Chaparral delivered lunch to the Elroy Air team to celebrate the milestone.
“This delivery is the realization of the value of the Chaparral, an autonomous, hybrid-electric drone capable of delivering hundreds of pounds of cargo without the need for runways or infrastructure,” said Elroy Air CEO Andrew Clare, Ph.D. “We thought about what the first delivery should be and decided to deliver lunch to the team who has worked tirelessly to make this vision a reality. As we move into 2026 having completed these critical milestones and now focused on scaling production with Kratos, Chaparral is ready to go to work to unlock unprecedented operational capacity for our commercial and defense customers.”
The delivery was conducted with the company’s Hatch Load Pod. The pod is a rear-access cargo module designed for rapid ground operations, enabling streamlined workflows, and minimal ground handling requirements. This pod is one of the many payload designs to enable multi-mission operations. Others include the Express Pod, Heavy Payload Pod, Pelican Case, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Pod, Climate-Control Pod, and Air Drop Pod.
“One of the remarkable outcomes of working closely with the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Marine Corps and allied forces, as well as logistics titans like FedEx and Bristow Group throughout the development of Chaparral is that we’ve been able to develop Chaparral to be a modular platform capable of flexing with the countless missions and operations our partners can imagine,” said Founder and Executive Chairman Dave Merrill. “It is great to see Chaparral flying further, faster, with heavier payloads and now making deliveries week after week, but what’s most exciting is seeing Chaparral rising to the occasion to meet the unique and expanding operational needs of our customers.”
The announcement comes after an eventful year for the company, which this summer began longer range flights, including multiple 25-mile flights in September, and the company also recently announced Kratos Defense & Security Solutions as its exclusive U.S. manufacturing partner for the Chaparral in a strategic manufacturing agreement to accelerate high-volume production.
Watch the delivery here: https://youtu.be/owX0ABb9Gng
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. For more information, visit elroyair.com.
Elroy Air makes first A to B cargo delivery with its hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft Chaparral
BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgium insisted on Thursday that its European Union partners must provide ironclad guarantees that it will be protected from Russian retaliation before it would back a massive loan for Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pleaded for a decision now to keep Ukraine afloat in the new year.
At a summit in Brussels with exceptionally high stakes for both the EU and Ukraine, the 27-nation bloc’s leaders are set to decide on whether to use tens of billions of euros in frozen Russian assets to underwrite a loan to meet Ukraine’s military and financial needs over the next two years.
The bulk of the assets — some 193 billion euros ($227 billion) as of September — are held in the Brussels-based financial clearing house Euroclear. Russia’s Central Bank sued Euroclear last week.
“Give me a parachute and we’ll all jump together,” Prime Minister Bart De Wever told members of the Belgian parliament just before the summit began. “If we have confidence in the parachute that shouldn’t be a problem.”
Belgium fears that Russia will strike back and would prefer that the bloc borrow the money on international markets. It wants frozen assets held in other European countries to be thrown into the pot as well, and for its partners to guarantee that Euroclear will have the funds it needs should it come under legal attack.
European officials say Russia is waging a campaign of sabotage and disruption across the continent. The Central Bank lawsuit ramped up pressure on Belgium and its European partners ahead of the summit.
The “reparations loan” plan would see the EU give 90 billion euros ($106 billion) to Ukraine. Countries like the U.K., Canada and Norway would make up any shortfall.
Russia's claim to the assets would still stand, but the assets would remain locked away at least until the Kremlin ends its war on Ukraine and pays for the massive damage it's caused.
In mapping out the loan plan, the European Commission set up safeguards to protect Belgium, but De Wever remains unconvinced.
“I have not yet seen a text that could satisfactorily address Belgium’s concerns," he said. "I hope to see one today.”
De Wever insisted that Belgium remains “a faithful ally” of Ukraine and wants to continue to help.
Soon after arriving in Brussels, Zelenskyy sat down with the Belgian prime minister to make his case for freeing up the frozen funds. The war-ravaged country is at risk of bankruptcy and needs new money by spring.
“Ukraine has the right to this money because Russia is destroying us, and to use these assets against these attacks is absolutely just,'' Zelenskyy told a news conference.
In an appeal to Belgian citizens who share their leader's worries about retaliation, Zelenskyy said, “One can fear certain legal steps in courts from the Russian Federation, but it’s not as scary as when Russia is at your borders.''
“So while Ukraine is defending Europe, you must help Ukraine.”
Whatever method they use, the EU leaders have pledged to meet most of Ukraine's needs in 2026 and 2027. The International Monetary Fund estimates that would amount to 137 billion euros ($160 billion).
“We have to find a solution today," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters. EU Council President António Costa, who is chairing the meeting, has vowed to keep leaders negotiating until an agreement is reached, even if it takes days.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said: “Now we have a simple choice. Either money today or blood tomorrow."
EU envoys have worked around the clock in recent weeks to flesh out the details and narrow differences among the 27 member countries. If enough countries object, the plan could be blocked. There is no majority support for a plan B of raising the funds on international markets.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that he hopes Belgium's concerns can be addressed.
"The reactions of the Russian president in recent hours show how necessary this is. In my view, this is indeed the only option. We are basically faced with the choice of using European debt or Russian assets for Ukraine, and my opinion is clear: We must use the Russian assets.”
Hungary and Slovakia oppose von der Leyen’s plan for a reparations loan. Apart from Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy and Malta are also undecided.
“I would not like a European Union in war," said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who sees himself as a peacemaker. He’s also Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest ally in Europe. “To give money means war.”
Orbán described the loan plan as “a dead end.''
The outcome of the summit has significant ramifications for Europe's place in negotiations to end the war. The United States wants assurances that the Europeans are intent on supporting Ukraine financially and backing it militarily, even as the peace talks drag on with few results so far.
The loan plan in particular also poses important challenges to the way the bloc goes about its business. Should a two-thirds majority of EU leaders decide to impose the scheme on Belgium, which has most to lose, the impact on decision-making in Europe would be profound.
The EU depends on consensus, and finding voting majorities and avoiding vetoes in the future could become infinitely more complex if one of the EU's founding members is forced to weather an attack on its interests by its very own partners.
De Wever too must weigh whether the cost of holding out against a majority is worth the hit his government's credibility would take in Europe.
Whatever is decided, the process does not end at this summit. Legal experts would have to convert any political deal into a workable agreement, and some national parliaments may have to weigh in before the loan money could start flowing to Ukraine.
Associated Press Writers Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin and Illia Novikov in Kyiv contributed to this report.
From left, Portugal's Prime Minister Luis Montenegro, European Council President Antonio Costa, French President Emmanuel Macron and Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban during a round table meeting at the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
European Council President Antonio Costa, center right, speaks with Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, center left, during a round table meeting at the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Belgium's Prime Minister Bart De Wever, center, speaks with from left, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides, Netherland's Prime Minister Dick Schoof, Luxembourg's Prime Minister Luc Frieden and Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk during a round table meeting at the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban speaks with the media as he arrives for the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, right, arrives for the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, center, is greeted as she arrives for a round table meeting on migration at the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Olivier Hoslet, Pool Photo via AP)
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, right, and Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz, left, attend a round table meeting on migration at the EU Summit in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Olivier Hoslet, Pool Photo via AP)
FILE - A view of the headquarters of Euroclear in Brussels, on Oct. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert, File)
