Tuesday, May 6^th 2025 – Tampa, FL – Whisper Aero Inc., a next-generation propulsion provider, unveiled a new family of systems for contested logistics known as Collaborative Logistics Aircraft (CLA) during Special Operations Forces (SOF) Week. Light (500 lbm payload) and heavy (3,000 lbm payload) variants of CLA were revealed utilizing Whisper’s proprietary UltraQuiet™ propulsion and JetFoil™ integrations for conventional and short takeoff and landing (STOL). Development of these aircraft is being accelerated by the US Air Force who has selected Whisper Aero for funding via Strategic Finance Increase (STRATFI) and Operational Energy Capabilities Improvement Fund (OECIF) contracts.

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Today’s joint air mobility portfolio relies heavily on large, fuel-hungry, runway-dependent aircraft that strain operational resilience. Shorter, less-maintained runways left over from World War II in the Pacific and other theaters make future contested logistics especially challenging. Increasingly, decentralized and more autonomous operations are being explored to deliver critical payloads on time. However, new aircraft capabilities are required to ensure payload delivery in new Agile Combat Employment concepts. To meet future needs, logistics aircraft of the future need to be capable of STOL or VTOL operations, autonomous, more efficient, more survivable, more maintainable, and affordable.

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Whisper Aero looked at how its propulsive innovations could tackle the modernization of contested air logistics and conceived a family of systems known as Collaborative Logistics Aircraft (CLA). Instead of one singular platform, Whisper believes that cargo missions will increasingly rely on distributed fleets of right-sized logistics UAS capable of operation from austere runways at any time of day.

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Whisper’s propulsion systems are the core enablers for these platforms. Multiple eQ250 propulsors, capable of 80 lbf of thrust, are integrated into the leading edge of the wings of these aircraft, in a concept known as JetFoil, to achieve coefficients of lift as high as 14, critical for short takeoff and landing from degraded runways. eQ250 propulsive efficiency improves at higher speeds, enabling higher speed flight of up to 250 kts with reduced acoustic and thermal signatures compared to existing turboprop or turbojet propelled aircraft. Static performance has been verified through tests with the Air Force Test Center (AFTC) at White Sands Missile Range’s (WSMR) Acoustic Range Complex (ARC).

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The CLA name is a nod to the Air Force’s CCA, Collaborative Combat Aircraft, in which autonomous capabilities are being utilized to revamp how the Air Force projects airpower. Whisper believes an autonomous systems approach to the logistics challenge will unlock new concept of operations (CONOPS) to move payloads anywhere and at any time. Without the need for a pilot on board, these aircraft are designed to be more affordable and attritable. They can reposition themselves with greater fuel efficiency, prioritizing energy needs for other aircraft in the fleet.  

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Whisper Aero has been selected for STRATFI and OECIF funding by the US Air Force to advance its CLA development. This comes after multiple years of maturing and validating its propulsion technologies together with AFWERX and the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) on prior small business contracts. Together with the Air Force, Whisper is taking a crawl, walk, run approach that successively builds towards the largest aircraft in the CLA family of systems.

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First, Whisper is leveraging its Ultralight, a retrofitted Swift3 glider with two eQ250s to gather flight test data and advance the thrusters to technology readiness level (TRL) 7/8. Whisper recently announced a $500K effort by the State of Tennessee in conjunction with Tennessee Tech to accelerate this effort. After successful civil flight tests, the team expects to advance to testing with the Air Force Test Center at White Sands Missile Range’s Acoustic Range Complex in 2026.

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Once the Whisper Ultralight is airborne, the engineering team will set its sights on the CLA Light, a 1,300 lbm Group 3 UAS capable of carrying 500 lbm payload over 200 NM or ferrying over 2,000 NM with no payload. The CLA Light is a clean sheet design leveraging JetFoil arrays of twelve eQ250 on its main wing to enable CTOL or STOL with a 50 ft takeoff/landing ground roll. Its long range and STOL capabilities are enabled by a 40 kW powerplant and a small battery and can dash at 175 kts. The nose easily opens to reveal an accessible payload bay for cargo specialists to load and unload necessary supplies. The team expects flight tests for this aircraft to begin in 2027.

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CLA Heavy will then build upon the learnings of the CLA Light and its flight test campaign. As a 10,140 lbm optionally crewed retrofit Group 5 UAS, the CLA Heavy will feature a new wing with eQ250 JetFoil arrays for CTOL or STOL flights with a 300 ft takeoff/landing ground roll. Its 50 ft wingspan features 30 higher voltage eQ250s proven out on the glider and CLA Light, enabling more robustness in flight due to no critical propulsor parts or subcomponents. Equipped with a 600 kW powerplant, the CLA Heavy will be capable of up to 250 kt speeds, 800 NM range with 3,000 lbm of payload, or 3,000 NM ferry flights with no payload. While the aircraft has been designed for cargo missions, it can be reconfigured for multiple missions where STOL and UltraQuiet™ flights may be enablers.

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Over the next four years, Whisper Aero will be focusing its air mobility efforts on rapidly designing, building, and flying multiple full-scale CLA variants with the intention of bringing this capability to service on a program of record. The designs of these aircraft, their propulsion systems, their manufacturing plans, and prototype builds will be covered through Whisper’s DoD contracts. Flight testing will begin through funded internal R&D before transitioning to funded DoD flight experimentation and exercises.  

As a propulsion company, Whisper Aero is not developing the CLA family of systems alone. Additional manufacturing and autonomy partners exist who will be announced soon. Customer interest for vertical takeoff and landing variants has also been expressed – VTOL variants may be explored in the future through additional partners.

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