UK-based cargo drone developer Windracers has officially opened its new production facility, having moved into the site earlier this summer.
Located in Fareham, near Southampton in southern England, the 22,000sq m (237,000sq ft) factory, opened on 1 September, will enable a significant increase in output of the firm’s Ultra aircraft.
Previously the company built the Ultra at a facility at Boscombe Down airfield, around 25 miles (41km) to the northwest.
Windracers says it has so far delivered “several dozen” aircraft to civil and defence customers globally, in the latter case including the Ukrainian military.
It says the expansion will “enable the company to more than double that [total] by year-end” and deliver hundreds of Ultra aircraft over the next two years. However, the company declines to specify the exact production rate.
Simon Muderack, Windracers chief executive, says: “This expansion is a major step for Windracers. It gives us the space and capability to scale up production of Ultra aircraft, creating skilled jobs here in Hampshire and meeting demand from customers in the UK and overseas.”
Earlier this year, Windracers unveiled the Mk2 variant of the Ultra, offering increased payload and performance over the earlier Mk1 model.
It is unclear if Windracers is continuing to build examples of the Mk1 aircraft. Images from the opening event feature only the Mk2 – recognisable by its inverted V-tail – and the company simply says it is “focused on offering the Ultra Mk2 going forward”.
