Piasecki Aircraft
Coatesville, Pennsylvania VTOL and UAV R&D firm founded 1955 by Frank Piasecki; developed the ARES tilt-duct drone and the KARGO II cargo aircraft.
Piasecki Aircraft Corporation is an American rotorcraft and unmanned-aircraft research and development company founded in 1955 by vertical-flight pioneer Frank N. Piasecki after he left Piasecki Helicopter. The company is run by his sons: Frederick Weyerhaeuser Piasecki, chairman and chief technology officer, and John Weyerhaeuser Piasecki, president and CEO.
Since 1955, the company has designed, built, and flight-tested more than 25 advanced VTOL and unmanned rotorcraft, including the Aerial Geep flying cars, the Pathfinder Ring-Tail compound helicopter, and the X-49A SpeedHawk ducted-propeller compound helicopter; in 2005 the U.S. Army named it prime contractor for two Future Combat Systems unmanned aircraft programs. Current programs include ARES, a tilt-duct VTOL aircraft built with Lockheed Martin under DARPA funding around a common flight module with interchangeable payloads, which completed its first tethered hover in September 2024; and KARGO II, a medium-lift autonomous cargo aircraft built on the KARGO program acquired from Kaman Air Vehicles in 2025, targeted for production readiness by 2026.
In 2025 the U.S. Air Force awarded the company 37 million dollars to develop VTOL and hydrogen-propulsion technology, funding a hydrogen-electric helicopter, the PA-890, with partner ZeroAvia. The company holds the National Medal of Technology and the Smithsonian Air and Space Achievement Award, and maintains an AS9100-certified quality system.
Primary type & automation activities this supplier delivers:
KARGO II Autonomous VTOL UAV
Medium-lift autonomous cargo UAV unveiled August 2025, payload capacity exceeding 1,500 lb, with optimized shaft-driven transmission; commercial availability planned late 2027.
ARES (Aerial Reconfigurable Embedded System)
Tilt-duct VTOL UAS with modular payload system for cargo, surveillance, and C4I roles; first tethered hover flight September 2024, developed with Lockheed Martin under DARPA funding.
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Contact Piasecki Aircraft
WEBSITE
https://piasecki.comPHONE
+1 610-521-5700HEADQUARTERS
United States
Company Facts
Founded
1955
Primary Role
Research Institute
Company Size
-
Primary Region
North America
Annual Sales
-
Funding Stage
-
Funding Total
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