Xwing is an autonomous aircraft company founded in 2016, initially focusing on cargo operations.
The company was founded by Marc Piette (former CEO) and Maxime Gariel (CTO). It received a $4 million seed round in 2018 led by Eniac Ventures, and a $10 million Series A in May 2020 led by R7 Partners, also including funding from Thales Group.[1][2][3][4] Its staff also includes Earl Lawrence, formerly at the FAA in unmanned aircraft and aircraft certification.[5]
In 2020, the company performed a four-hour fully autonomous flight, and was performing gate-to-gate autonomous operations in February 2021.[6][7][8][3][9] In October 2022, the company announced NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate awarded a contract to share data and study autonomous flights in the national airspace.[10][11][12]
Xwing operates N101XW, a Cessna 208 Caravan under an experimental license with its autonomous system.[13][14]
The company acquired Airpac Aviation, a cargo feeder.[15]
The company acquired Martinaire, another cargo feeder, in 2022.[15][7]