Drone designers are constantly trying to make tweaks to create a better operating drone. For the most part, there are two formulations, a vertical lifting drone with rotors, or a fixed wing drone that needs to be launched to gain altitude. They both have their pros and cons. Vertical lifting drones are great at hovering, getting into hard to reach spaces, and have a wide range of flight capabilities. Fixed wing drones, that look more like traditional small airplanes, are able to fly for far longer times because they glide once airborne, making them ideal for long range missions. However, a German based company decided to combine the two features to achieve a fixed wing, vertical lifting drone, with long range flight capabilities.

In 2017 Tom Plümmer, Jonathan Hesselbarth, and Ansgar Kadura founded Wingcopter in Darmstadt, Germany. As they explain, “Wingcopter’s core innovation is its unique tilt-rotor mechanism. It ensures a smooth and robust transition between hovering like a multicopter and efficient forward flying like an airplane.” It offer the best of both worlds for drones. The sleek design is built from light weight glass fiber and carbon airframes giving it a perfect ratio for take to flight maintenance. The drone is able to lift off from the ground and land in a vertical position. This means it can be flown from most any location, even if there is no runway space available. The drone is able to hover in place to gather data just like any standard multi rotor drone. But for flight the Wingcopter has a unique patented feature.

The Wingcopter’s rotors are on a hinge that move 90° to the front of the drone’s fixed wings so it can fly forward like a plane or glider. This give the Wingcopter not only incredible speed, a record setting 240 km/h, but also a longer flight time than a standard drone. The Wingcopter can cover a range of 100 kilometers. It is also water proof and wind resistant so it can handle extreme weather situations. With it’s compact design the drone only weighs 6kg, a feature that allows the drone to carry a large payload. As the website goes on to state, “Heavy lifting is Wingcopter’s strength. It is designed to carry up to 6 kilograms of additional payload, more than 35 % of its total weight.” For transportation the drone breaks down into 7 parts to fit securely in a protective case. Assembly is quick and easy with only one screw needed before it is ready to fly.

The Wingcopter is being used by a number of industries world wide. They have been delivering medications and relief supplies in Tanzania, Ireland, and Vanuatu. In these missions, that were supported by DHL and UNICEF, Wingcopter was able to reduce patients wait time form days and hours down to minutes before getting life saving vaccines and medicine. The drone is being used for search and rescue as well as security measures. Recently they completed the training and mapping trails for the drone mapping company Smops SA to begin mapping remote areas in Africa. Robyn Lindsay, co-owner of Smops SA explained why they chose to go with Wingcopter for their extreme mapping mission. She said, “Fixed-wing drones perform adequately in completing large mapping missions, takeoffs and landings have proven to be hazardous due to the fact that small clearings or rocky areas are the only option available. The results were often catastrophic and the lifetime of these drones were limited, requiring frequent and expensive repairs.”

With Wingcopter’s vertical liftoff and landing Smops SA can easily map difficult terrain. And, because the Wingcopter can support a heavy payload, they can use the right camera equipment to get the job done. All of this is done autonomously through Wingcopter’s on board software provided by AirRails. AirRails was created by UAVenture, and is considered one of the most sophisticated drone navigation systems to date. The tightly integrated system provides the drone with everything needed to complete a safe flight and gather any necessary data.

This past December Wingcopter announced that they have received funding from Corecam Capital Partners, a Singapore based investment firm founded in 2009. With this new investment Wingcopter aims to increase their 35 employees with the addition of specialists to grow the business. Wingcopter is currently operating in 10 countries, they foresee this investment allowing them to expand their global reach and speed up the design process of their next generation of drone models. Managing Partner of Corecam, Martin Lechner, said, “The investment in Wingcopter is the ideal addition to our existing portfolio in the fast-growing drone technology market. Their unique tilt-rotor mechanism as well as the strong global patent protection and the interest of blue-chip customers were decisive for us.” This investment couldn’t have come at a better time said Tom Plümmer. With Corecam Capital Partners, Wingcopter can reach their ultimate goal. As Tom said, “Our vision is to sustainably improve the lives of people around the world with our technology.”