XTI Aerospace (Nasdaq: XTIA) provides unmanned aircraft systems solutions for enterprise, public safety, and government customers—with two development-stage divisions focused on autonomous defense drones and domestic manufacturing. XTI recently relocated its headquarters from Englewood, Colorado, to the Dallas suburb of Addison. Today, from its new HQ near Addison Airport, XTI said its Drone Nerds division has added the RigiTech Eiger long-range delivery drone to its enterprise solutions portfolio.
Drone Nerds, an XTI subsidiary based in Aventura, Florida, is lifting off with the Eiger via a new collaboration with Switzerland-based RigiTech, a manufacturer of drone delivery systems.
The RigiTech Eiger is a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone used for logistics and delivery missions. Designed in Switzerland, the Eiger combines vertical takeoff capability with fixed-wing flight to support longer-range operations while enabling deployment without runway infrastructure, XTI said.
Supporting logistics missions with a range of up to 62 miles
The Eiger is designed to support logistics missions including medical delivery, site-to-site transport, and delivery to remote or hard-to-reach locations.
In other words, the Eiger is meant for more than delivering tacos and products to local neighborhoods, as a number of drone delivery services now offer in North Texas—including Flytrex, Alphabet’s Wing, Walmart, Amazon, Chipotle, and more.
Instead, the Eiger is able to support drone deliveries over distances up to 62 miles and up to 59 minutes of flying time. That’s far beyond the pilot’s direct line of sight, so the drone uses cloud-based mission management and automated routing for its missions. The Eiger platform integrates safety systems and connectivity designed to support such long-range delivery missions, XTI said.
The Eiger supports payloads of up to 6.6 pounds,
‘A key growth opportunity’
Drone Nerds CEO Jeremy Schneiderman said drone delivery “represents a key growth opportunity in the drone technology space, and the addition of the RigiTech Eiger further strengthens our enterprise portfolio with a Swiss-designed platform tailored for long-range delivery missions.”
“We’re seeing increasing adoption of drone delivery systems in industries such as healthcare and industrial logistics, and we believe this market will continue to grow as organizations look for faster, more efficient ways to transport critical goods and materials,” Schneiderman added in a statement.
David Rovira, RigiTech’s co-founder and chief business officer, said the new partnership supports his company’s expansion into the U.S. market.
“Our Eiger long-range delivery drone was built to support time-sensitive drone logistics operations with a focus on safety, connectivity, and operational reliability,” Rovira added, “and we believe Drone Nerds is a strong partner to help advance that mission.”
The RigiTech Eiger is now being offered for evaluation, procurement, and deployment planning through Drone Nerds’ enterprise sales team, subject to supply availability, customer requirements and applicable regulatory approvals, the company said.
The Eiger’s use is subject to applicable regulatory approvals and operational authorizations, XTI noted.
Seeing drone advances ‘on a daily basis’
In a January letter to shareholders, XTI Chairman and CEO Scott Pomeroy said Drone Nerds “may be one of the best positioned drone companies in the U.S. today to navigate the fast evolving market dynamic seemingly influenced on a daily basis by advancements in technology, new entrants, and ever-changing regulations.”
Last November, XTI acquired Drone Nerds and announced the close of a $25 million investment by Orlando-based Unusual Machines.
XTI Aerospace’s subsidiary XTI Aircraft had been known for its development of the six-passenger TriFan 600 next-generation vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, aimed at commercial and defense aerospace applications and what the company calls “the emerging Vertical Economy.” But XTI Aerospace largely shelved the TriFan 600 in February, according to Aviation International News, as it turned its business focus to drones following its acquisition of Drone Nerds.
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