Apr 2026 - Ground Testing Complete

Seaflight's prototype for the Outbacker 150 ultra-STOL ultra-long range cargo drone has completed rigorous static and dynamic ground tests and is entering the flight test campaign to demo its unique aero flow control and autonomous capabilities. 

​

[more]

Feb 2026 - Cargo drone sneak peek!

Seaflight finally revealed our long-range electric cargo drone with ultra-short takeoff and landing thanks to our active aerodynamic flow control tech. We're launching our Outbacker family of logistics aircraft with high endurance, and they only get bigger from here. 

​

[more]

Feb 2026 - Getting ready for ground testing

Low speed ground tests kick off tomorrow on the large uncrewed cargo UAS that can fly oh-so-much-further than anything else like it thanks to our proprietary active aero tech.

​

[more]

Feb 2026 - Our new aircraft arrives

New airplane! A full factory floor is a happy factory floor. Seaflight's long-range electric cargo drone pre-production prototype has arrived at the Sydney workshop for final integration. 

​

[more]

Dec 2025 - Nathan joins the team

An early Christmas present for the Sydney team - engineer Nathan Kernick joins us over the Southern Hemisphere summer helping the ground test team.

​

[more]

Nov 2025 - Samantha joins the team

Samantha Bidwell joined Seaflight from UNSW Engineering, and we basically recreated that scene from Apollo 13 where we dump a bunch of components on a table and say "we have to make this fit into this, using nothing but that".

​

[more]

Nov 2025 - Sami joins the team

Sami Beaumont joined Seaflight's AURA-e Flight Demonstrator project after graduating from his degree at Macquarie University Engineering.

​

[more]

Oct 2025 - Manufacturing update

We have a lot of engineers here at Seaflight in Sydney and at our fantastic partners Advanced Composite Structures Australia | ACS-A working every day to build a prototype electrified large cargo drone.

​

[more]

Aug 2025 - Aero development ends

After 400 iterations in computation fluid dynamics, compared to the initial "napkin sketch" starting point, what's being manufactured will have double the lift-to-drag efficiency than our original concept, while preserving the pragmatic "box to carry boxes" approach that defines the platform.

​

[more]

Aug 2025 - Sydney team growing

The Seaflight team is at record strength. There are now really quite a lot of people from several companies on three continents as well as UNSW and Macquarie University developing revolutionary tech to make electrified aircraft more efficient - and cost-effective - than ever before.

​

[more]

Aug 2025 - Iron Bird under construction

The north wing of the prototyping floor filled up fast already. Seaflight's 1:1 hardware-in-the-loop testbed for our cargo drone tech demonstrator is being assembled - time to finish testing all the electro-mechanical systems at Seaflight's brand new Sydney facility.

​

[more]

Jul 2025 - Sydney R&D HQ opens

Seaflight's Australian operations have moved into a brand new facility in Sydney - we call it the Pi Factory.

​

[more]

May 2025 - André joins the team

André Aquino PhD joins Seaflight Technologies as Lead Engineer in our Sydney group, helping to develop the world's most efficient large cargo drones.

​

[more]

Mar 2025 - TRaCE funding backs powertrain testing partnership with UNSW Sydney

New funding support from Trailblazer for Recycling and Clean Energy (TRaCE) is helping us make sure we have a high quality powertrain to get the most out of our innovative aerodynamic technology, by partnering with a testing lab at UNSW Sydney.

​

[read the story]

Mar 2025 - Manufacturing partner is Advanced Composite Structures - Australia

We're thrilled to formally announce Advanced Composite Structures Australia | ACS-A as the airframe manufacturer for our electric cargo drone with 30% more range than a conventional aircraft thanks to our novel active aerodynamic tech.

​

[more]

Feb 2025 - Another contract with Defense completed, advanced maritime autonomy

Seaflight has already wrapped up a 4 month sprint contract with the US Strategic Capabilities Office - a division of the Office of the Secretary of Defense - to help transition our innovative SeaSense autonomy engine for ultra-low altitude flight over the open ocean. 

​

[more]

Jan 2025 - Nicholas joins the team

Nicholas Morjanoff is joining the team working on Seaflight's ultra-long-range cargo drones, fresh off his recent success with Macquarie University's MQ Speed in breaking a human-powered land speed record in Nevada.

​

[more]

Jul 2024 - Wind tunnel testing at Caltech

Our NSF-funded project to validate Seaflight's advanced aerodynamic flow control concludes with successful testing across dozens of configurations in the wind tunnel at Caltech.

​

[more]

Jul 2024 - Major Funding through the Emerging Aviation Technology Partnerships program supports collab with Macquarie University

Seaflight is awarded $2m project funding from Australia’s Emerging Aviation Technology Partnerships (EATP) program, to build and fly its long range cargo drone in 2026. Seaflight heads a consortium partnered with academic lead Macquarie University.

​

[read the story]

Jun 2024 - $2m funding for cargo drone

Seaflight is awarded $2m project funding from Australia’s Emerging Aviation Technology Partnerships (EATP) program, to build and fly its long range cargo drone in 2026. Seaflight heads a consortium partnered with academic lead Macquarie University.

​

[read the story]

Jun 2024 - US Air Force contract

Seaflight Technologies partners with the US Air Force on ultra-efficient aerodynamic technology. Seaflight will demonstrate how its advanced aerodynamic flow control can benefit next-gen electrified platforms.

​

[more]

May 2024 - Ending the wingship program

Seaflight Technologies is ending our "ground effect" wingship development program. After a series of world-first flights, sub-scale prototype CC is retiring to make way for a new program, and the "ground effect" tech will continue to transition to existing customers in Defense.

​

[more]

Apr 2024 - Agreement with Airhart 

Seaflight Technologies and innovative aviation company Airhart Aeronautics partner to bring advanced flight controls to Seaflight prototypes, and to bring Seaflight's advanced active aerodynamics to future Airhart general aviation products. Airhart and Seaflight will also explore collaboration on potential future DoD projects.

Dec 2023 - A record breaker

Seaflight's test team reports that their hours of wingship flights off the coast of Australia - conducted before and after a hurricane! - were the first-ever of their kind over open ocean, the first wingship drone flights in the southern hemisphere, and the first "ground effect" flights of any kind in Australia for 20 years.

[watch the video] 

Dec 2023 - World-first wingship flights

Seaflight capped a year-long multi-prototype test campaign with a series of world-first flights. Missions over the Coral Sea in Queensland, Australia, were the first ever autonomous "ground effect" wingship flights over open ocean, among several other records and firsts.

[watch the video] 

Sep 2023 - Agreement with AIMS

Seaflight Technologies and the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) sign MoU to explore wingship testing. The two parties will also evaluate ideas to use Seaflight's wingships for scientific missions.

​

[more]

Jul 2023 - Partnering with Volant Autonomy

Seaflight Technologies and Volant Autonomy partner to build trusted autonomy into cargo drones, formalizing an MoU at the Royal International Air Tattoo in the UK (RIAT 2023).

​

[read the story]

Jul 2023 - NSF SBIR awarded

Seaflight Technologies has been awarded SBIR Funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation. This accelerates work on our novel high-lift aerodynamic technology for more efficient electric flight.

​

[more]

Jun 2023 - Johan joins the team

Dr. Johan Melis joined Seaflight this summer as our Lead Aerodynamics Engineer. Johan has a PhD from Caltech, where his work combined advanced robotics with aerodynamics - a rare skill set he now puts to work each day making our friendly flying robots.

​

[more]

Apr 2023 - Prototype flight updates

Seaflight's 5th gen prototype "ground effect" wingship, CC, has been completing initial flight testing. The wingship will soon be the first autonomous ultra-low-altitude drone to fly over the open ocean. With a 2.6m wingspan, the scale prototype is at the right scale to thoroughly validate the "SeaSense" autonomy engine the company's been developing for months.

​

[watch the video]

Sep 2022 - Techcrunch covers Seaflight

Seaflight was named a Techcrunch "Top Moonshot" from the Y Combinator S22 batch.

​

[read the story]

Aug 2022 - Seaflight's in Y Combinator

Seaflight emerges from stealth and launches at Y Combinator with a mission to accelerate an electric and equitable future for flight, starting with our "ground effect" cargo drone wingships that can connect coastal and island communities.

​

[more]