FlightWave Opens Drone Facility in Torrance
FlightWave, a drone aerospace manufacturing firm, opened a new facility in Torrance, CA, boosting LA's role in advanced unmanned systems. The site will focus on drone assembly, avionics, and autonomous systems.
FlightWave, founded in 2014, was acquired by Red Cat Holdings in September 2024. The company specializes in manufacturing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for aerial surveying and is based in Santa Monica, CA. The new Torrance facility, with 51,023 square feet, triples FlightWave's previous footprint. This expansion follows a recent five-year lease agreement valued at nearly $5.4 million. The facility will allow FlightWave to increase its drone production, potentially reaching 6,000 Black Widow drones per month by adding two shifts. Currently, they produce about 125 drones monthly using only a third of the space. FlightWave's Edge 130 Blue drone is a military-grade tricopter designed for long-range mapping, inspection, and surveillance. It can be assembled in one minute and has a flight time exceeding 60 minutes. The Edge 130 is NDAA-compliant and approved by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) for procurement by the U.S. Department of Defense. Torrance has a long history in the aerospace industry, dating back to World War II. Other aerospace companies with a presence in Torrance include Boeing, SpaceX, Northrop Grumman, and Verus Aerospace. Aerospacelab also opened a satellite manufacturing facility in Torrance in September 2024.
