Manassas aviation startup lands $115 million round

Demand has taken off for Manassas-based aviation startup Electra.aero‘s electric short takeoff and landing aircraft, the EL9 Ultra Short, with more than 2,200 preorders totaling more than $10 billion.

Now, with $115 million raised in a Series B funding round that closed in April, the company plans to move from prototype to development, Electra Chief Financial Officer Max Ochoa says.

“There’s a lot of additional headcount and technology that needs to be brought to bear to go from basically designing, developing, and then starting to think about manufacturability and certifiability of a brand-new aircraft,” Ochoa says. “That requires capital.”

The nine-seat EL9 follows on the heels of the company’s EL2 Goldfinch two-seat prototype, which flew for the first time in November 2023 and has now achieved 80 flights, Ochoa says. The company, which launched in 2020, doubled from 40 employees in 2023 to about 80, with plans to grow to about 120 employees, including engineers, in the next year.

Billed as the world’s first ultra short aircraft, the EL9 requires only 150 feet to take off and land and will have a range of 1,100 nautical miles with a 3,000-pound payload. It uses electric motors to blow air over the wings for takeoff and is powered by a hybrid-electric propulsion system that recharges the aircraft in flight, eliminating the need for charging infrastructure. The company plans to design the aircraft for use by commercial and defense customers. In 2023, it received an up to $85 million award from the Air Force for prototype development. That same year, the company also received a grant and award from the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corp.

The Series B round was led by New Jersey-based venture capital and private equity fund Prysm Capital. Prysm’s portfolio includes electric vehicle maker Rivian and Field AI, an artificial intelligence robotics company.

Electra is also scouting sites for a manufacturing plant, with plans to select a location by mid-2026, Ochoa says, adding Virginia is among the states under consideration. Delivery of aircraft is expected to begin in 2029.

Joe Benevento, president and CEO of VIPC, says Electra’s Series B round was the second largest to be announced this year in the United States by an advanced air mobility technology company.

“It’s been remarkable to witness the impressive growth trajectory of this homegrown Virginia tech startup,” he says.