LA Startups Win DARPA Drone Contract

The "Drone Dominance Gauntlet" is a key part of the Pentagon's $1.1 billion push to acquire over 200,000 low-cost, one-way attack drones by 2027. This initiative uses a rapid, multi-phase competition model, with "Gauntlet" events where military operators evaluate drones in realistic scenarios. The goal is to shrink procurement cycles from years to months and build a resilient domestic supply chain for mass production. Elroy Air, based in South San Francisco, brings its Chaparral platform to the competition—a hybrid-electric, vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) cargo drone. The Chaparral is designed to autonomously transport 300 pounds over 300 miles and has existing development contracts with the Air Force, Army, and Marine Corps. The company is partnered with defense contractor Kratos to scale manufacturing, aiming to produce hundreds of aircraft annually starting in 2026. Tucson-based Dragoon Technology specializes in long-range, low-cost unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), leveraging novel hybrid powertrains. The company has a history of developing and fielding a variety of unmanned systems, including for hazardous weather environments and as communications relays. Their focus is on creating scalable, high-endurance drones that can operate in swarms or serve as networked assets for ISR and communications. The Gauntlet's first phase focuses on a 10km open-terrain strike and a 1km urban environment strike, both with a minimum 2kg payload. Twenty-five vendors were initially selected for this phase, which culminates in approximately $150 million in prototype orders for about 30,000 drones. Subsequent phases will see increased production volumes and pressure to drive down unit costs from an initial $5,000 to under $2,300.