News & Events

Kea Aerospace has successfully completed a solar-powered flight to the stratosphere with the Kea Atmos Mk1b . The milestone UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) flight, conducted within Kea Aerospace’s Special Use Airspace south of Banks Peninsula, flew to an altitude of over 56,000ft and marks another significant achievement for New Zealand’s aerospace sector. The mission commenced […]

In November we took a giant leap toward the stratosphere! Our Kea Atmos aircraft soared to 6,000 feet and flew 8km downrange, marking the first Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flight for the Kea Atmos. This flight also marked the completion of the company’s low-altitude test campaign, which included twelve previous Kea Atmos flights, […]

Kea Aerospace has successfully completed a landmark BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) flight, demonstrating the capabilities of our advanced autonomous flight technology. The milestone UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) flight, conducted within Kea Aerospace’s Special Use Airspace, marks significant growth in the field of UAV’s in New Zealand. The mission commenced with Kea Aerospace’s R6 unmanned aircraft launching from […]

Christchurch-based aerospace venture Kea Aerospace has successfully secured New Zealand government support to collaborate with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Founded in 2018, Kea Aerospace is partnering with NASA Research Centres to advance high-altitude airborne earth observation techniques. The project will focus on using Kea’s solar-powered stratospheric plane to monitor coastal water quality, […]

Meet some of the Kea Aerospace flight test team on a day when they’re testing the auto pilot’s ‘return to home’ functionality as part of fully autonomous flight operations.

The chronicles of human flight have always been interwoven with our aspiration to explore the skies. From the myth of Icarus to the modern airline traveller, there has been an innate human desire to fly faster, further, and higher. One of the most captivating aspects of this journey is high-altitude flight. Its history is as […]

The advent of Earth observation has revolutionised our understanding of the planet and its dynamic processes. With steady advancements in technology, we now have a vast array of tools, from satellites to balloons, to near-surface drones and high-altitude platforms. These eyes in the sky provide massive amounts of data every minute of every day. This […]

On July 7th, 2023, it was a frosty morning to set up for a special flight test at the Tāwhaki Aerospace Research Centre at Kaitorete, 50 minutes out of Christchurch. This was not just any flight test but the culmination of months of research and development that required meticulous planning. It was Kea Aerospace’s first […]

The age of aviation began in the early 20th Century, building the foundation for the exploration of the skies. The journey started with flights only several feet into the atmosphere, and steadily, over decades, we have taken incremental steps to reach its upper reaches, with a few specialist and experimental aircraft now operating at the […]

The Kea Atmos has completed four successful test flights from March through April this year. We are on course for a stratospheric flight attempt later this year. The Audi electric launch vehicle has attracted some attention throughout the aviation and electric world.  Here are a few media mentions: Aviation Week UASweekly.com Interesting Engineering Electrek Find […]