Empirical Systems Aerospace (ESAero)
"Accelerating Advanced Aerospace Projects"
San Luis Obispo, California aerospace engineering firm; designs and builds electric aircraft and unmanned aircraft systems for AeroVironment.
Empirical Systems Aerospace, Inc. (ESAero) is an aerospace engineering and manufacturing firm headquartered in San Luis Obispo, California, operating a 32,000-square-foot design and prototyping facility and a 53,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. In March 2026, AeroVironment acquired the company for approximately 200 million dollars, and ESAero now operates as a subsidiary within AeroVironment's Loitering Munition Systems business unit.
The firm designs and manufactures electric and hybrid-electric aircraft and unmanned aircraft systems under AS9100-certified manufacturing and IPC certification, and its engineering contributed to NASA's X-57 Maxwell distributed electric propulsion demonstrator. Its product line includes LUMBERJACK, a Group III launched-effect unmanned aircraft with autonomous target sensing; VESA, a VTOL electric aircraft built as a counter-UAS platform with onboard object detection and tracking; FAST and FAST-ISR swarm unmanned aircraft for reconnaissance and utility missions; the IE-SOAR hydrogen fuel cell system developed with Intelligent Energy; and the EDS Series of dynamometers for testing electric propulsion systems.
Engineering capabilities span aircraft design, structural analysis, electric and hybrid propulsion integration and design-for-manufacturing, taking programs from concept through production for defense and air mobility customers.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
LUMBERJACK
Group III send-and-forget launched-effect UAS with autonomous target sensing and multi-strike capability.
VESA
VTOL electric small aircraft counter-UAS with onboard object detection, tracking, and swarm deployment.
EDS Series Dynamometer
Dynamometer series for testing and characterizing electric aircraft propulsion systems.
IE-SOAR
Lightweight hydrogen fuel cell power system for extended-endurance unmanned aircraft, developed with Intelligent Energy.
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Contact Empirical Systems Aerospace (ESAero)
WEBSITE
https://www.esaero.com/PHONE
+1 805 275 1053HEADQUARTERS
United States
Company Facts
Founded
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Manufacturer
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Primary Region
North America
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