Capacity investment accelerates, while clean propulsion moves from lab to flight test

A fortnight that opened with Germany taking delivery of its first F-35A closes with the aerospace supply chain committing capital on a scale not seen in recent months.

The most consequential procedural development of the week was the expiration of the Hart-Scott-Rodino waiting period for Archer Aviation's acquisition of Boeing's Wisk Aero, Insitu and SkyGrid subsidiaries, covered elsewhere in this issue. The antitrust clearance, which occurred on 18 September, satisfies one of the formal conditions to closing; other regulatory approvals remain outstanding and the transaction is expected to close by the end of 2026. The combination would bring autonomy software, eVTOL hardware, Group 3 UAS manufacturing and airspace intelligence capabilities under a single ownership structure. That Insitu is simultaneously the subject of a completed connectivity testing and integration with Gogo, also covered elsewhere in this issue, is a reminder that the subsidiary's own programme activity continues independently of the ownership transition.

The contrast with Vertical Aerospace is instructive. Vertical has initiated a formal review of strategic alternatives and appointed Jefferies as financial adviser, citing the need to finance certification, industrialisation and commercialisation following what the company describes as its most operationally significant year. That year included becoming only the second company globally to complete a piloted transition flight in a full-scale eVTOL, an achievement we reported in April. We reported in August that the company had lined up $100 million for Valo development. The new review signals that additional financing is now being sought for the next phase. Separately, Elroy Air announced that its PIPE commitments have been upsized to $175 million, with existing investors including Lockheed Martin Ventures participating in the upsize, though the business combination with Inflection Point Acquisition Corp. VII remains subject to closing conditions.

Pilatus achieved dual EASA and FAA certification for the Safety Autoland system on the PC-12 PRO this week, a concrete regulatory outcome in a field where autoland capability has been advancing steadily across aircraft categories. The certification covers a fully automated response to pilot incapacitation, from system activation through landing, automated communications and engine shutdown. We reported in August that the Phenom 300EV became the first light jet with autoland certification. The PC-12 PRO certification extends that capability into the single-engine turboprop category.

Two developments advanced propulsion programmes at different stages of maturity. Honeywell's SkyShot 1600 engine was selected by the US Air Force to advance into Preliminary Design Review for the Autonomous Collaborative Platform programme, a formal design-maturity gate we reported the engine was working toward in February. Separately, Safran's corporate venture arm acquired a minority stake in Akira, a propulsion prototyping specialist already working with Safran Aircraft Engines, Safran Helicopter Engines and Safran Tech on the RISE demonstrator and on hybridisation and hydrogen combustion research. That investment formalises an existing collaboration rather than initiating a new one.

FACC's opening of its expanded Jakovlje facility in Croatia completes a capacity project announced in 2022. The site has grown from 160 to over 500 employees and the production area has tripled, with EUR 36 million invested. It is now FACC's largest production site outside Austria. The expansion is a tangible example of the supply-chain capacity building that has featured in several recent weeks, and it joins the Airbus Broughton and GE Niskayuna investments covered elsewhere in this issue as physical infrastructure that has moved from commitment to operation or near-operation during this period.