Odys Aviation
Odys Aviation is a Long Beach-based aerospace startup developing long-range, dual-use hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft — the unmanned Laila tactical drone (450-mile range, 8-hour endurance) and the piloted Alta regional passenger/cargo VTOL (1,200-mile range) — for defense, logistics, regional airlines, and civil customers; pre-revenue with roughly $42M raised and $9B+ in LOIs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersLong Beach, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Odys Aviation does
Odys Aviation is a Long Beach, California-based aerospace company developing long-range, dual-use hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft for defense, logistics, and civil applications. The company operates a single platform architecture across two products: Laila, a pilotless hybrid-electric cargo drone that is currently flying with a 450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, 130 lb payload, and an onboard 100 kW high-speed generator; and Alta, a piloted regional VTOL designed to seat up to nine passengers or carry up to 3,500 lb of cargo over a 1,200-mile range once certified. The core technology is a proprietary flap-based thrust vectoring architecture that replaces tilt rotors with a simpler, more certifiable design, paired with hybrid-electric propulsion running on standard Jet A/A-1/JP-8/Diesel fuel. The architecture is intended to enable runway-independent operations without specialized charging infrastructure, supporting remote-region logistics, inter-island regional air mobility, medical and humanitarian response, and counter-UAS defense missions.
The business model is pre-revenue on aircraft deliveries: customers place Letters of Intent and pre-orders rather than purchasing off-the-shelf aircraft, and the company has reported over $9 billion in cumulative LOIs and pre-orders across airlines, general aviation, regional air mobility, AAM operators, and cargo segments. Revenue mechanics in the near term come from government and evaluation contracts (U.S. Department of Defense Phase II contract, Honeywell SAMURAI-Laila airborne counter-UAS program, the Sultanate of Oman Operational Launch Programme, MWASALAT GCC logistics partnership, the UK Coventry Urban Ascent program, and similar AAM PoC contracts). Go-to-market is direct enterprise and government sales — there is no reseller or self-serve channel — and is increasingly run through strategic partnerships (Honeywell for defense, Motion Applied for propulsion, MWASALAT for GCC cargo, regional consortia for urban AAM). Pricing is negotiated enterprise-to-enterprise with no public list price.
The company was founded in 2021 (formerly Craft Aerospace) after completing Y Combinator and has raised a $12.4M seed round plus a $26M Series A (closed October 2025), alongside smaller pre-seed and post-Series A rounds totaling roughly $42M to date. Customer concentration is spread across multiple named anchors — Fiji Airways (Pacific regional), MWASALAT and the Sultanate of Oman (GCC), the U.S. DoD (defense), Aramex (cargo), plus order-book logos across AAM and regional aviation — but all of this is currently LOI-driven rather than binding backlog. Leadership combines aerospace pedigree (former Airbus Chief Engineer for VTOL, former Airbus Head of Certification, former Archer/Sikorsky/Bell/GKN operations leader) with prior autonomy/transit experience at GoogleX, Hyperloop One, and Arrivo.
Odys Aviation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Odys Aviation
- Legal name
- Odys Aviation, Inc.
- Website
- https://odysaviation.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Odys Aviation is a Long Beach-based aerospace startup developing long-range, dual-use hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft — the unmanned Laila tactical drone (450-mile range, 8-hour endurance) and the piloted Alta regional passenger/cargo VTOL (1,200-mile range) — for defense, logistics, regional airlines, and civil customers; pre-revenue with roughly $42M raised and $9B+ in LOIs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Odys Aviation industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Electric VTOL Aircraft (Advanced Air Mobility)
- NAICS
- Aircraft Manufacturing (336411), Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511), Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing (33641), Other Aircraft Parts and Auxiliary Equipment Manufacturing (336413)
- SIC
- Aircraft (3721), Search, Detection, Navagation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys (3812), Aircraft & Parts (3720)
- akta.pro primary industry
- VTOL & Hybrid UAV Platforms (IMABAIAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Military Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) & Autonomous Aerial Platforms (IMABAMAC), Special-Mission Fixed-Wing Aircraft Manufacturing (ISR, AEW&C, Patrol) (IMABAAAH), UAS Power Systems & Propulsion (Motors, ESCs, Batteries, Fuel Cells) (IMABAIAK), UAS Integration, Certification & Compliance Systems (Remote ID, Detect-and-Avoid) (IMABAIAO)
Keywords
Where Odys Aviation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Long Beach
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Odys Aviation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Aircraft sales (pre-orders and Letters of Intent): Pre-revenue hardware sales model: customers place LOIs and pre-orders for Laila and Alta aircraft. The company has reported $9B+ in LOIs and pre-orders across airlines, general aviation, regional air mobility, AAM operators, and cargo segments, and $4.8B in LOIs signed after the first sub-scale demonstrator flight. Pre-revenue at this stage, with revenue expected from future aircraft deliveries beginning with Laila and followed by Alta.
- Defense and government contracts: Contract and procurement revenue from defense and government customers, including a U.S. Department of Defense Phase II contract (Mar 2022) and the Honeywell SAMURAI-Laila airborne C-UAS program (announced 31 Mar 2026) targeting protection of critical infrastructure.
- International AAM ecosystem programs and evaluation contracts: Revenue tied to multi-country AAM Proof of Concept and evaluation programs — e.g., the Sultanate of Oman Operational Launch Programme (early 2026), MWASALAT GCC aerial logistics, and the UK Coventry Urban Ascent project — which include evaluation, integration, and trial activities.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | — | Per-aircraft pricing negotiated enterprise-to-enterprise; not publicly listed |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Odys Aviation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Odys Aviation designs and manufactures long-range hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft on a shared propulsion platform, currently offering the Laila unmanned tactical cargo drone (450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, 130 lb payload, 100 kW onboard generator, runway-independent) and the in-development Alta piloted 9-passenger / 3,500 lb regional VTOL (1,200-mile range). Aircraft are sold via Letters of Intent, pre-orders, and bespoke contracts to defense departments, regional airlines, cargo and logistics operators, and government AAM programs, with a counter-UAS defense configuration offered through integration with Honeywell's SAMURAI system.
Product overview
Odys Aviation operates a platform-plus-aircraft architecture centered on a single shared hybrid-electric propulsion platform that powers two distinct VTOL aircraft: Laila (a pilotless tactical cargo drone that is currently flying and has 450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, and 130 lb payload) and Alta (a piloted regional VTOL aircraft that will follow with certification, offering up to 9-passenger/750-mile passenger configuration or 3,500 lb/1,200-mile cargo configuration). The common platform uses Odys' proprietary hybrid-electric propulsion and a flap-based thrust vectoring design that replaces tilt rotors, enabling dual-use defense, logistics, and civil/humanitarian missions. The Laila platform is also offered with the Laila-SAMURAI airborne counter-UAS defense configuration through a partnership with Honeywell.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Laila: Hybrid-electric, dual-use unmanned VTOL cargo aircraft with 450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, and 130 lb payload, designed for counter-UAS, emergency response, and long-range logistics missions.
- Alta
Products and services
- Laila Laila is a pilotless, runway-independent hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft and Odys' tactical cargo drone. It combines VTOL flexibility with a 450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, 100 kW onboard high-speed generator, and 130 lb payload capacity, and is designed for dual-use defense (e.g., counter-UAS), cargo, and civil/humanitarian missions with JARUS SORA compliance. Sold to defense, government, and logistics operators via Letters of Intent and pre-orders.
- Alta Alta is Odys' piloted VTOL aircraft that builds on the Laila platform. In passenger configuration it carries up to nine passengers and luggage up to 750 miles; in cargo configuration it carries up to 3,500 lb up to 1,200 miles. It supports defense ISR and supply missions, medical transport for underserved regional airports, and regional passenger routes.
- Laila-SAMURAI Airborne Counter-UAS Defense System Airborne counter-UAS defense system combining Odys' Laila VTOL UAV (450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, 100 kW onboard high-speed generator) with Honeywell's SAMURAI autonomous C-UAS platform (AI-enabled Detect/ID/Track using SIGINT, radar, EO/IR gimbals, plus defeat via EW, cyberattack, and airborne directed energy). Targeted at defense and critical infrastructure protection (refineries, pipelines, offshore platforms).
Quantifiable outcome
- 450-mile range and 8-hour endurance on Laila while carrying 130 lb payload
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Odys Aviation
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Odys Aviation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability7 records
Feature6 records
Odys Aviation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- Honeywell AerospaceflagshipJointly developing the SAMURAI-Laila airborne counter-UAS defense system, integrating Honeywell's SAMURAI autonomous C-UAS platform onto Odys' Laila UAV. Provides a 450-mile range, 8-hour endurance airborne layer that sits between ground sensors and missile defense. Marked SAMURAI's first airborne application after one year of joint development; planned demonstrations in Norway.
- U.S. Department of DefenseflagshipContinued defense partnership beyond the initial Phase II contract (Mar 2022), with the dual-use Laila platform now under consideration for counter-UAS defense of U.S. strategic assets and infrastructure.
- Motion AppliedcoreStrategic engineering collaboration to develop a next-generation hybrid-electric propulsion architecture for advanced flight applications. Integrates Motion Applied's AMPEX MCU-600 silicon carbide inverter platform with Odys' high-speed generator units to form a certifiable hybrid propulsion system for the Laila and Alta VTOL aircraft, with embedded software for hybrid systems coordination and aviation-level redundancy management.
- Urban Ascent consortium (Skyfarer, Coventry University, Manufacturing Technology Centre, SLiNK-TECH)coreConsortium led by Coventry City Council, funded by Innovate UK and the Department for Transport through the Future Flight Regional Demonstrator programme. Will assess use cases for medical logistics, emergency response, and infrastructure inspection while building the business case for urban air mobility, with Odys contributing aircraft and ecosystem expertise.
- Sultanate of Oman (MTCIT / civil aviation)flagshipLandmark agreement to launch one of the world's most comprehensive Advanced Air Mobility ecosystem programs. Includes the Oman Operational Launch Programme (OLP) evaluating Laila with VTOL capabilities in early 2026 across civil, commercial, and defense use cases, with testing across diverse terrains in Oman's remote regions.
- Fiji AirwayscoreFiji Airways signed a Letter of Intent expressing purchase interest in Odys' Laila hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft to connect Pacific Islands and improve sustainability, with flight tests planned in 2026. Functions as an anchor customer and regional channel for Pacific island operations.
- Honeywell Aerospace (ground control station)coreEarlier collaboration between Honeywell and Odys to develop ground control stations for Odys' hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft, supporting uncrewed operations in Oman and the Pacific.
- MWASALAT (Omani Transport Group)corePartnership to develop aerial logistics programs in the GCC by operating Odys' hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft Laila, with launch targeted in 2025. MWASALAT effectively serves as a regional operating partner/distributor for cargo and logistics missions in the Gulf.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Odys Aviation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Joby Aviation: Direct peer developing a piloted battery-electric VTOL for regional passenger mobility. Competes with Odys's Alta in the same advanced air mobility / regional VTOL category, though with a different (battery-electric) propulsion architecture.
- Archer Aviation: Direct peer building a piloted eVTOL for urban air mobility and regional routes. Targets the same pilot-certified passenger VTOL market as Odys's Alta; senior Odys leadership (Bob Ellithorpe, Carlos Herrera) came from Archer.
- BETA Technologies: Direct peer developing the Alia eVTOL and conventional-electric aircraft for cargo, medical, and defense applications, with a charging-network rollout. Overlaps with Odys's Laila cargo/mission-flexible use case and Alta regional passenger play.
- Vertical Aerospace: Direct peer developing a piloted eVTOL for intra-city passenger routes in the UK and Europe. Competes with Odys's Alta in piloted VTOL and has overlapping customer interest from regional airlines.
- Lilium: Direct peer building a piloted eVTOL jet for regional passenger service. Competes with Odys's Alta for piloted regional VTOL certification and commercial launch.
- Overair: Direct peer developing a piloted all-electric VTOL for urban air mobility. Odys's Head of Marketing previously led marketing at Overair, indicating direct talent and category overlap.
- Eve Air Mobility: Direct peer (Embraer-backed) developing a piloted eVTOL and urban air mobility services. Competes with Odys's Alta in the same regional passenger VTOL category with similar LOI-driven demand.
- Elroy Air: Direct peer developing a hybrid-electric vertical-takeoff cargo drone (Chaparral) for middle-mile logistics. Closest functional competitor to Odys's Laila on the unmanned cargo side, with similar hybrid-electric VTOL architecture and dual-use positioning.
Broad incumbents
- Anduril Industries: Broad incumbent in defense autonomous systems, including counter-UAS (Roadrunner) and unmanned platforms. Competes with Odys in the dual-use / counter-drone defense market with substantially more capital and a much larger product portfolio.
Emerging players
- Natilus: Emerging player building a blended-wing-body autonomous cargo aircraft for regional air freight. Adjacent to Odys's Laila and Alta cargo configurations, focused on larger payloads over longer ranges.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Odys Aviation social profiles
Digital presenceOdys Aviation compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Odys Aviation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Odys Aviation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Odys Aviation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors18 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Odys Aviation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Odys Aviation
What does Odys Aviation do?
Odys Aviation designs and manufactures long-range hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft on a shared propulsion platform, currently offering the Laila unmanned tactical cargo drone (450-mile range, 8-hour endurance, 130 lb payload, 100 kW onboard generator, runway-independent) and the in-development Alta piloted 9-passenger / 3,500 lb regional VTOL (1,200-mile range). Aircraft are sold via Letters of Intent, pre-orders, and bespoke contracts to defense departments, regional airlines, cargo and logistics operators, and government AAM programs, with a counter-UAS defense configuration offered through integration with Honeywell's SAMURAI system.
Is Odys Aviation a public or private company?
Odys Aviation is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Odys Aviation founded?
Odys Aviation was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Odys Aviation based?
Odys Aviation is headquartered in Long Beach, United States, in the North America region.
How does Odys Aviation make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Aircraft sales (pre-orders and Letters of Intent) is the primary driver. The others are defense and government contracts and international AAM ecosystem programs and evaluation contracts.
Who are Odys Aviation's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, BETA Technologies, Vertical Aerospace, Lilium, Overair, Eve Air Mobility and Elroy Air. Anduril Industries is listed as a broad incumbent. Natilus is listed as an emerging player.
Does Odys Aviation have an API?
No public API is recorded for Odys Aviation.
What industry is Odys Aviation in?
Odys Aviation's product category is Electric VTOL Aircraft (Advanced Air Mobility). Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMABAIAC, VTOL & Hybrid UAV Platforms, with a secondary code of IMABAMAC, Military Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) & Autonomous Aerial Platforms. Its NAICS code is 336411 and its SIC code is 3721.