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\nSan Francisco-based Mighty Fly is a good example of a small drone company with outsized global ambitions \u2013 and the cutting-edge design expertise and fierce entrepreneurial drive needed to realize them.<\/p>\n
\nSan Francisco-based Mighty Fly is a good example of a small drone company with outsized global ambitions \u2013 and the cutting-edge design expertise and fierce entrepreneurial drive needed to realize them.<\/p>\n
In just three years since its founding, the firm \u2013 owned and directed by Manal Habib\u2013 a remarkable woman in an industry still heavily dominated by men \u2013 has left a powerful mark.\u00a0 Mighty Fly just released the third-generation prototype of its state-of-theart business cargo drone \u2013 the Cento.\u00a0 With FAA approval already in the bag, and a flock of powerful new investors standing by, the company will soon be flying worldwide.<\/p>\n
The second generation of the Centro was released less than a year ago \u2013 a sign of this company\u2019s extraordinary pace of development.\u00a0 Even then, industry observers were marveling at its capabilities.\u00a0 The Cento is a fixed wing, eVTOL aircraft with a cargo capacity of 100 lbs, a range of 600 miles, and a maximum speed of 150 mph .\u00a0 That gives the Cento II a perfect business niche:\u00a0 small and medium-sized replacement parts firms that need to deliver cargo heavier than a package of emergency medical supplies but lighter than a motorcycle or a piece of heavy machinery.\u00a0 The Cento can make these deliveries faster, more safely and more cheaply \u2013 and with a much smaller carbon footprint \u2013 than fully gas-powered road vehicles or propeller aircraft.\u00a0 It\u2019s potentially a huge win-win for shipper and receiver alike.<\/p>\n
The Cento\u2019s long range and speed of delivery is due, in part, to its hybrid powertrain, which obviates the need for recharging between flights. An internal combustion engine recharges the drone\u2019s battery while the craft\u2019s still airborne, enabling it to perform multiple consecutive deliveries.<\/p>\n
But that\u2019s not all: the Cento also streamlines the delivery process with the most advanced cargo handling system of its kind.\u00a0 The drone comes with a fully automated conveyor belt platform that allows for completely autonomous loading and unloading of drone cargo.\u00a0 The only human intervention required is for the cargo drop-off and pick-up.<\/p>\n
The main innovation of the Cento III is a much larger payload (500 pounds) and a longer flight range (about a thousand miles).\u00a0 Might Fly envisions the third-generation drone will expand its current business niche into larger medical supply companies and just-in-time manufacturing firms that need fast and accurate same-day delivery of goods, especially perishables.<\/p>\n
Who\u2019s interested in Mighty Fly\u2019s state-of-the-art cargo drone?\u00a0 Just about everyone, it seems.\u00a0 Last year, the global electronics giant Mitsubishi tapped the firm as one of a dozen UAV companies that the Japanese company will now support as part of its own European-wide drone \u201chub\u201d development strategy.\u00a0 Mighty Fly was the only US drone company selected, and one of only two start-ups, an indication of the high regard with which the firm, despite its relative youth, is already held, especially abroad.<\/p>\n
In the United States, not just businesses, but governments are also taking notice. The State of Michigan has sought out Mighty Fly to become an integral part of its recently unveiled and highly-touted Future Mobility and Electrification Program (FMEP).\u00a0 Michigan\u2019s automotive, chemical, and pharmaceutical industries, faced with recurring bottlenecks in their supply chains, are demanding a high level of speed and efficiency in their delivery schedules, but officials say their current road vehicle and point-to-point air delivery systems are having trouble keeping up.<\/p>\n
The state is so excited about Mighty Fly\u2019s capabilities, including its automated loading system that it;s provided the company with seed money to make an unprecedented public exhibition that could lead to a long-term statewide government contract for the firm, while opening the door to major new commercial opportunities.<\/p>\n
The US Air Force has also recognized the agility of MightyFly\u2019s platform and is supporting further development of its technology.\u00a0 The company has already received a $1.2 million small business SBIR grant that helped fuel the development of the Cento III.\u00a0 The Pentagon is especially excited about the craft\u2019s autonomous cargo handling system, which it believes will allow combat troops in the field to be resupplied more quickly and wounded soldiers to receive faster, life-saving treatment.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be chosen for this contract signifies a vote of confidence in our mission and technical expertise.\u00a0 We are honored to partner with the U.S. Air Force and to leverage our know-how to develop a system that directly addresses agile and expedited logistics needs and provide a major feature that is needed for the successful integration of autonomous aircraft within logistics,\u201d Habib says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
San Francisco-based Mighty Fly is a good example of a small drone company with outsized global ambitions \u2013 and the cutting-edge design expertise and fierce entrepreneurial drive needed to realize them. In just three years since its founding, the firm \u2013 owned and directed by Manal Habib\u2013 a remarkable woman in an industry still heavily… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7113"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7113\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dronevideos.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}