Lift Challenge results

The DARPA Lift Challenge has set a new benchmark in vertical lift aviation.

Taking place at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, the national competition concluded on Aug. 9 after teams demonstrated novel drone designs with the potential to transform vertical heavy-lift aircraft into a more accessible option for both the U.S. military and commercial industry.

The top-performing aircraft, designed by AVIDrone, Inc., pushed the limits of electric helicopter design and demonstrated an unprecedented payload-to-weight ratio of 3.84:1.

While this did not achieve the Challenge goal of a 4:1 ratio, it still represents a success by DARPA's definition.

"We chose the target because we believed it might be possible and what we proved this week," said Phillip "Donna" Smith, Lift Challenge program manager. "Even though we didn't hit it in an official score, we saw the path at this competition."

Continued DARPA investment

According to DARPA Director Stephen Winchell, the technology demonstrated at the Lift Challenge is just the tip of the iceberg. In the short term, he described the Lift Challenge drones as better than what's in the market today. And for the longer term, he estimated that their innovations will proliferate throughout the entire community.

"We're just seeing the very beginning of the transformation that this community is going to bring to the aerospace industry," Winchell said at the Aug. 9 awards ceremony. "Every single team here, you are DARPA."

DARPA will support further maturation of promising drone concepts through multiple Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards and connecting teams with investors through its Commercial Strategy Office.

These opportunities will help advance the technologies demonstrated during the Challenge and explore pathways for transition to national security and commercial applications.