Vertical Aerospace Caps Landmark Week at Farnborough, Accelerating the Path to Commercial Electric Aviation

FARNBOROUGH, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul 24, 2026--

Vertical Aerospace ("Vertical") (NYSE: EVTL), a global aerospace and technology company pioneering electric aviation, concluded a landmark Farnborough International Airshow after a week of major milestones that demonstrated the maturity of its technology, the strength of the ecosystem supporting commercial electric aviation, and its continued execution against certification, manufacturing and commercialization strategy.

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Historic Public Flight Demonstrations

The week began with Vertical making history by completing the first public electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) transition flight demonstration at the Farnborough International Airshow. The aircraft successfully transitioned from vertical take-off to wing-borne flight before returning to a vertical landing, showcasing how it will operate in real world environments without the need for a runway. Vertical continued successful demonstration flights throughout the week in front of tens of thousands of visitors.

Stuart Simpson, CEO of Vertical Aerospace, said: "This week at Farnborough showed that electric aviation is moving from promise to progress. From our historic public transition flight to new customers, partnerships and government support, we've demonstrated that commercialising a new class of aircraft takes more than breakthrough technology - it takes an ecosystem. We're proud to be helping build that ecosystem and bringing the future of flight closer to reality."

UK Government Support and Industrialisation

Alongside the piloted flight demonstrations, Vertical announced it is in advanced discussions with the UK Government on a package of support worth up to £10 million ($13.5 million) to establish its first full-scale production facilities in the UK, highlighting the UK's commitment to building a world-leading advanced air mobility industry. During the week, the new Secretary of State for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, Jonathan Reynolds, visited Vertical's stand and attended a demonstration flight.

The Company’s manufacturing plans are intended to support future production scale-up as Vertical moves from flight testing toward certification and entry into service. During the week, Vertical also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with UK Export Finance to explore future export and customer financing support as the Company scales production and serves international markets.

This government momentum, was further expanded with the announcement of a £3.4 million UK Government backed ECLiPSE programme led by Vertical Aerospace to develop next-generation charging and thermal management technologies for electric aircraft .

Defence and Autonomous Capabilities

Vertical also continued to expand its autonomous defence capabilities through its partnership with Near Earth Autonomy, while the Ministry of Defence confirmed its interest in the Company's eVTOL, hybrid-electric and autonomous technologies, with ongoing engagement to explore future dual-use applications.

Ecosystem and Global Partnerships

Beyond technology and industrialisation, Vertical continued to build the ecosystem needed to bring electric aviation into commercial service. This included:

Path to Certification and Entry into Service

Vertical’s Farnborough announcements build on continued progress toward certification of its Valo aircraft and its target of achieving Type Certification in 2029. The company is advancing through a structured flight‑test and design‑approval programme, using piloted full-scale prototypes to de-risk the path to certification.

In parallel, Vertical is investing in UK manufacturing and battery facilities and working closely with regulators, air navigation service providers, and infrastructure partners to ensure Valo can be safely integrated into existing airspace and operated under emerging eVTOL rules. This combined focus on technology, regulation, and industrial readiness is designed to support a smooth path from certification to commercial entry into service on key urban and airport‑shuttle routes.

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About Vertical Aerospace

Vertical Aerospace is a global aerospace and technology company pioneering electric aviation. Vertical is creating a safer, cleaner, and quieter way to travel. Valo is a piloted, four-passenger, Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, with zero operating emissions. Vertical is also developing a hybrid-electric variant, offering increased range and mission flexibility to meet the evolving needs of the advanced air mobility market.

Vertical combines partnerships with leading aerospace companies, including Honeywell, Syensqo and Sonaca, with its own proprietary battery and propeller technology to develop the world's most advanced and safest eVTOL.

Vertical has c.1,500 pre-orders of Valo, with customers across four continents, including American Airlines, Avolon, Bristow, GOL and Japan Airlines. Certain customer obligations are expected to be fulfilled via third-party agreements. Headquartered in Bristol, UK, Vertical's experienced leadership team comes from top-tier aerospace and automotive companies such as Rolls-Royce, Airbus, GM, and Leonardo. Together, they have previously certified and supported over 30 different civil and military aircraft and propulsion systems.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any express or implied statements contained in this press release that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding a UK Government package to support the Company’s planned global full-production sites in the United Kingdom, which remains subject to the completion of legal, subsidy control, due diligence and ministerial approval processes; the Memorandum of Understanding from UK Export Finance, which is not legally binding; the interest from the Ministry of Defence in the defence applications for Vertical’s eVTOL, hybrid-electric and autonomous capabilities; the continued support from Innovate UK; the receipt of government funding relating to the zero emission flight demonstrator competition; the public flight demonstrations at the Farnborough International Airshow and related historical significance; Vertical’s involvement in Project VERTI-GO, the Project’s planned initiative and successful milestones; the non-binding Memorandum of Understanding between Vertical and Near Earth Autonomy and its anticipated benefits, the integration of autonomous flight systems with Valo; the Memorandum of Understanding with Sigma Air Mobility for the pre-order of Valo aircraft, which are not legally binding, conditional and may be terminated without penalty at any time by either party; our ability to collaborate with Sigma Air Mobility on aircraft operations, commercial readiness and customer requirements; the Memorandum of Understanding with the General Authority of Civil Aviation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to establish the regulatory and operational foundations needed to enable Advanced Air Mobility in Saudi Arabia; the Memorandum of Understanding with MoU with Cluster2 Airports Company to prepare for the development of eVTOL aircraft operations within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; the design and manufacture of our aircraft and the hybrid-electric variant, certification and the commercialization of our aircraft and our ability to achieve regulatory certification of our aircraft product on any particular timeline or at all, the features and capabilities of the aircraft, business strategy and plans and objectives of management for future operations, including the building and testing of our prototype aircrafts on timelines projected, completion of the piloted test programme phases, selection of suppliers, the differential strategy compared to our peer group; expectations surrounding pre-orders and commitments; as well as statements that include the words “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “project,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “may,” “should,” “anticipate,” “will,” “aim,” “potential,” “continue,” “is/are likely to” and similar statements of a future or forward-looking nature. These forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are not a guarantee of future performance. Actual outcomes may differ materially from the information contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including, without limitation, the important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 24, 2026, as such factors may be updated from time to time in the Company’s other filings with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. The Company disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than to the extent required by applicable law.

Demonstrates historic public eVTOL transition flights at Farnborough International Airshow, showcasing how the aircraft will operate in real world environments

NABLUS, West Bank (AP) — The Israeli military shot and killed four Palestinians in the village of Tell in the northern West Bank, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Friday, raising tensions in the occupied territory after an Israeli settler was killed in a confrontation with local residents.

Two other Israelis and four more Palestinians were wounded, health officials said, and the Israeli military announced it was preparing for an “extensive” counterterror operation in the West Bank, with troops surrounding the town of Nablus.

“The security forces must be allowed to act freely and with full force against terrorism,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a joint statement with Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz. They called Friday for more troops to the West Bank and the razing of the homes of the accused in Tell as well as collecting weapons and revoking work permits in the village.

Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich went farther, saying that the villages of Tell, Iraq Burin and Beit Furik “need to look exactly like the refugee camps in Nablus and Tulkarm,” referring to the mass demolition campaign that displaced tens of thousands in the West Bank towns last year.

“It is necessary to evacuate the population there for their protection and to clear these villages of terrorist infrastructure,” Smotrich said. “A sharp, determined, and unequivocal military action is required here and now.”

Five Palestinian villages surrounding Nablus were attacked by Israeli settlers on Friday, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA.

The towns and villages surrounding Nablus sit in one of the most violent parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In addition to newly approved settlements, at least nine farming outposts dot the area and attacks by Israeli settlers, army incursions and confrontations have become frequent.

Palestinians and human rights groups have increasingly documented armed settlers entering villages in the area. Livestock theft, arson and the defacement of mosques are routinely reported.

Israeli deaths have repeatedly been followed by revenge against nearby Palestinian communities called “price tag” attacks. That pattern followed the March 21 death of 18-year-old Yehuda Sherman, who was killed when a Palestinian vehicle struck his ATV near Beit Imrin. Senior politicians, including Smotrich, attended Sherman’s funeral and called for vengeance.

Over the next two days, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs documented 32 settler attacks affecting 30 Palestinian villages and communities across the West Bank, about a third near Nablus governorate. Settlers torched homes and vehicles, vandalized property and assaulted residents, injuring at least 32 Palestinians, according to OCHA.

The exact circumstances of Friday's incident remained unclear, but Israeli media reports and interviews with local Palestinian officials suggested a group of settlers entered Tell and were confronted by residents who were fearful of an attack.

According to the Israeli military, one of the residents took one of the settlers' weapons and fired on the group, killing Benayahu Mellet, 32, a security guard in a settlement nearby.

In a video of the incident, confirmed by the Israeli military and circulated online by the military correspondent for Israel's Army Radio, two armed men in civilian clothing, as well as at least one Israeli soldier, are shown pointing their weapons at a group of Palestinians who had gathered in a field.

At one point, the two armed men rush toward several Palestinian residents with their guns drawn. In the footage, the residents try to push them back and appear to disarm one of the men before opening fire.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it killed the man who took the settler's weapon and that he was armed when soldiers shot him. But a separate video, published by Israeli media outlets and confirmed by the military, showed Israeli forces firing on a group of Palestinians in the same field who were already on the ground.

More than a dozen gunshots can be heard in the footage, which is less than a minute long. The military said the suspect was one of the people killed in the field. It did not respond to questions about why soldiers killed the other men — all of whom were related — or how long after the original altercation the killings took place.

Later, army chief Eyal Zamir said he was sending more troops to the occupied West Bank.

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McNeil reported from Brussels and Cunningham from Jerusalem. Associated Press writer Sam Metz in Ramallah contributed to this report.

People mourn as the bodies of four Palestinians who, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, were killed by Israeli forces near the village of Tell, arrive at Nablus Speciality Hospital in the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

People mourn over the body of Jawad Ramadan, who, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, was killed by Israeli forces near the village of Tell, after his body was brought to Nablus Speciality Hospital in the West Bank city of Nablus, Friday, July 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)