Showing posts with label Xwing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Xwing. Show all posts

08 March, 2024

Xwing gains U.S. Army xTech SBIR autonomy contract

Building on success of recent Air Force autonomous cargo missions, Xwing will demonstrate its mission-ready autonomy technology to support Army modernization efforts.


Xwing, a leading defense and aviation autonomy technology startup, today announced that it was advanced as a winner of a Phase I SBIR from the Army xTech SBIR Autonomy program. In the coming months, Xwing will showcase its ability to conduct autonomous airlift and logistics missions during live operational demonstrations for Army stakeholders.

In a recent announcement, Nicole Fox, the Army’s SBIR Program’s portfolio manager for autonomy and contested logistics, sustainment, science and technology stated, “To support mobility and navigation across multiple terrains, it’s important we develop and employ ground and aerial robotic autonomous systems throughout the Army. Solutions developed via the competition – and through follow-on SBIR contracts – will support Soldier safety and efficiency in contested environments.”

Bringing innovative autonomy solutions to solve mission capability gaps for Defense customers is familiar territory for the company. Xwing is a key partner of the Air Force’s AFWERX Autonomy Prime program. Last month, Xwing was awarded a Military Approval to fly autonomous cargo missions during the Air Force’s AGILE FLAG 24-1. As part of this Agile Combat Employment (ACE) exercise, Xwing flew over 2,800 autonomous flight miles through public and military airspace, delivering essential cargo to 8 different military and civilian airports across California.

05 August, 2021

Veteran Aviation Leaders Join Xwing’s Board of Advisors

Aviation leaders from Thales, FedEx Express, Airbus Americas, and WestJet, support Xwing in the development and commercialization of its autonomous flight technology


Xwing, the company pioneering autonomy for aviation, today announces the addition of two key advisors, Greg Hall, former EVP & CEO of Air Operations at FedEx Express, and Allan McArtor, former Chairman and CEO of Airbus Americas and former FAA Administrator. Hall and McArtor join Xwing’s existing board of advisors alongside Jeff Martin, former COO of WestJet, and Michel Grenier, Vice President and General Manager at Thales. The group of executives leverage their combined industry experience of over 90 years to support Xwing’s continued growth and development.

With their transformative autonomous flight software stack, Xwing has developed industry-first solutions to help meet shortages within the growing air cargo industry while improving safety and infrastructure utilization nationwide. The appointment of these aviation industry veterans comes on the heels of the company’s $40M funding round, $400M valuation, and the completion of the world’s first autonomous gate-to-gate flight.

“At Xwing, we’re developing technology that will transform the aviation industry, and we must have a team of experts on our side who can provide insights on commercialization, certification, partnerships, and more,” said Marc Piette, Xwing CEO and founder. “We’re looking forward to our continued work together and focusing our ambitions as a team towards navigating the regulatory landscape as we look to integrate autonomous flight into the cargo and commercial airspace.”

Xwing’s Board of Advisors consists of the following members:

Greg Hall formerly led FedEx’s Air Operations division and oversaw FedEx’s global fleet, including more than 650 aircraft serving more than 375 airports worldwide. In his previous role as Executive Vice President & CEO of Air Operations, he was responsible for safety and airline regulatory compliance, along with aviation technology management and strategic aviation projects. Hall will be joining the Xwing team as an advisor, providing his expertise to support the development of new autonomous aircraft to the commercial cargo market.

Allan McArtor was formerly Chairman and CEO of Airbus Americas and a former FAA Administrator. Before joining Airbus, McArtor was founder, Chairman, and CEO of Legend Airlines, a scheduled passenger air carrier operating jet aircraft based in Texas. As a veteran aerospace executive, he will bring his experience to support the Xwing team with certification efforts and partnerships across the aerospace industry.

Jeff Martin is President & CEO of Aero Design Labs. Previously, he took on the role of COO at WestJet and worked as Executive Vice President of Operations for JetBlue Airways. Jeff brings more than 31 years of industry experience to support the Xwing team in the launch of new air operations.

Michel Grenier is Vice President and General Manager at Thales, a global high technology leader investing in digital and “deep tech” innovations, including Xwing’s autonomous gate-to-gate flight technology. Michel acts as an advisor and board observer to the Xwing team, contributing his advanced flight control systems expertise to support Xwing in developing their next-generation auto flight system.

The latest additions to the board of advisors will be key in streamlining the speed at which Xwing’s autonomous gate-to-gate flight technology can be implemented widely across the commercial cargo market in accordance with FAA regulation.

For more information on Xwing, visit https://xwing.com/.


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