Guardian Agriculture a pioneer in Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) systems for large-scale sustainable farming becomes the first commercially approved eVTOL operator in the U.S. Guardian Agriculture has secured U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) authorization to operate its aircraft nationwide. This allows eVTOL to safely deploy its agricultural eVTOL systems across the country.
In conventional farming, ground spraying equipment is increasingly being replaced by unmanned autonomous systems, but these systems cannot provide comprehensive coverage at competitive prices. With Guardian Agriculture’s eVTOL solution, equivalent coverage is achieved to traditional aerial crop dusting and ground spraying equipment while maintaining or reducing costs and delivering digital precision.
Adam Bercu, Founder and CEO of Guardian Agriculture, stated that eVTOL-powered crop protection is superior to crops, the environment, and growers’ profitability. Guardian Agriculture’s commitment to designing and manufacturing its systems entirely in the U.S. supports national competitiveness, job creation, and security.
According to Wilbur-Ellis VP of Supplier Relations Willie Negroni, the FAA’s recent approval allows Guardian Agriculture to revolutionize farming with the Guardian SC1. Precision, safe crop protection is delivered time- and cost-effectively with the Guardian SC1. The SC1 covers 40 acres per hour with a 200-pound payload and a 15-foot aircraft width.
Additionally, the system, which integrates an autonomous aircraft, a supercharger at the ground station, and software that generates domestically stored data, provides on-target application when needed. As the first manufacturer of commercial eVTOLs operating at scale nationwide, Guardian Agriculture is accumulating thousands of hours of flight time.
During the coming months, Wilbur-Ellis will begin commercial operations in California while expanding production capacity. A world-class team of engineering, autonomy, and manufacturing experts at Guardian Agriculture hails from Apple, BAE, Sikorsky, Tesla, and Uber.
