Draft:Wingtra
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Comment: In accordance with the Wikimedia Foundation's Terms of Use, I disclose that I have been paid by my employer for my contributions to this article. GreyKiteEditor (talk) 07:31, 8 July 2026 (UTC)
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Unmanned aerial vehicles; aerial surveying and mapping |
| Founded | 2014, Zurich, Switzerland |
| Founders | Maximilian Boosfeld Basil Weibel Elias Kleimann Sebastian Verling |
| Headquarters | Zurich , Switzerland |
Key people | Maximilian Boosfeld, CEO |
| Products | WingtraOne GEN II WingtraRAY WingtraCLOUD WingtraPilot WingtraGROUND |
Number of employees | approx. 120 (July 2026) |
Wingtra AG is a Swiss company headquartered in Zurich that develops vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drones and related software for professional aerial surveying and mapping. The company was founded in 2014 as a spin-off from the Autonomous Systems Lab at ETH Zurich and launched its first commercial product in 2017.[1][2]
History
[edit]Founding (2014–2016)
[edit]Wingtra was founded in 2014 by Maximilian Boosfeld, Basil Weibel, Elias Kleimann, and Sebastian Verling, who were working on thesis research at ETH Zurich's Autonomous Systems Lab. Their work focused on VTOL aircraft and autonomous flight, and led to a tailsitter design capable of taking off and landing vertically before transitioning to fixed-wing flight for area coverage. The company was formally registered during this period and was accepted into the Wyss Zurich accelerator program, a joint initiative of ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich supporting the commercialization of scientific research.[1][2]
In March 2016, a prototype was demonstrated at the CeBIT technology fair in Hanover, Germany, where it was covered by IEEE Spectrum.[3] During the same event, German Chancellor Angela Merkel viewed a presentation of the drone.[4]
Market entry (2017–2020)
[edit]Wingtra launched the WingtraOne commercially in early 2017[1] and raised $5.8 million in early-stage funding that year.[5] Three of its co-founders — Maximilian Boosfeld, Basil Weibel, and Elias Kleimann — were named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list in the Industry category in 2017.[6] In 2020, Wingtra ranked second overall in the Swiss Top 100 Startup Rankings and first in the drone category.[7]
Series B funding (2021–2023)
[edit]In 2021, Wingtra released the WingtraOne GEN II.[8] In March 2023, the company closed a $22 million Series B round with investors including DiamondStream Partners, EquityPitcher Ventures, Verve Ventures, the European Innovation Council Fund, ACE & Company, and Spring Mountain Capital founder John L. Steffens.[1][9][10][11]
Series B1 and WingtraRAY (2024–present)
[edit]In August 2024, Wingtra closed a €23 million Series B1 round led by RKKVC, a Polish-founded family office, with participation from SymbiaVC, Spectrum Moonshot Fund, Cadence Growth Capital, Spring Mountain Capital, Helvetic Trust, EquityPitcher Ventures, and DiamondStream Partners.[12][13] In July 2025, Wingtra launched the WingtraRAY.[14][15] In February 2026, the WingtraRAY received FAA Category 3 Operations Over People (OOP) approval, enabling flight over populated areas using a parachute system without requiring a waiver across approximately 98 percent of US territory.[16][17]
Products
[edit]Wingtra's commercial products use a tailsitter VTOL design, in which the aircraft takes off and lands vertically before transitioning to fixed-wing flight for area coverage.
The WingtraOne, launched in 2017, was Wingtra's first commercial product.
The WingtraOne GEN II, released in 2021, expanded payload compatibility and added in-app manual control, removing the need for a separate remote control unit.[8]
The WingtraRAY, launched in 2025, supports a single-flight coverage area of up to 550 hectares (approximately 1,360 acres) and is compatible with RGB, LiDAR, multispectral, and inspection payloads.[14][15] In the United States, the platform is NDAA compliant and listed under the AUVSI Green UAS and DIU Blue UAS programs.[14][16] In Europe, it holds EASA C3 certification in standard configuration and C6 classification when equipped with its parachute system.[14][15]
Wingtra's software supports flight planning, ground control management, data acquisition, and processing of data into CAD- and GIS-ready outputs.[18]
Wingtra drones are used in surveying, construction, mining, agriculture, and environmental monitoring, with customers including NASA and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.[1]
Funding and operations
[edit]Wingtra's global headquarters are in Zurich, Switzerland, with a US office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.[1] Wingtra has completed three principal funding rounds: $5.8 million in 2017,[5] a $22 million Series B in March 2023,[1][9][10][11] and a €23 million Series B1 in August 2024.[12][13]
Recognition
[edit]Wingtra appeared in the Swiss Top 100 Startup Rankings from 2016 through 2021, ranking second overall and first in the drone category in 2020.[7] The company's WingtraOne drone received the Swiss Excellence Product Award in 2016.[19][20] Three of its co-founders were named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list in 2017.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g Coldewey, D. (2023, March 21). "Mapping drone startup Wingtra is charting a new future after landing $22M." TechCrunch.
- ^ a b "Wingtra AG." Wyss Zurich.
- ^ Cass, S. (2016, March 15). "CeBIT 2016: Wingtra Wants To Be Your Hybrid Drone." IEEE Spectrum.
- ^ MacDougall, J. (2016, March 15). "German chancellor Angela Merkel poses as she watches a presentation of a drone by Swiss based company Wingtra during her visit to the Digital Business fair CEBIT" [Photograph]. AFP/Getty Images.
- ^ a b "Drone startup Wingtra takes off vertically with extra $5.8M in funding." Startupticker.ch. September 26, 2017.
- ^ a b "Nine Swiss change makers among the Forbes '30under30' Europe." Startupticker.ch. January 18, 2017.
- ^ a b "Wingtra AG." startup.ch.
- ^ a b "Wingtra launches WingtraOne GEN II drone for large-scale city mapping missions." DroneDJ. August 4, 2021.
- ^ a b "Wingtra lands $22 million funding for commercial VTOL drones." CompositesWorld. March 29, 2023.
- ^ a b "Wingtra raises $22M as its survey drones soar to new heights." SiliconAngle. March 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "Wingtra lands $22M funding to accelerate their operations globally." Startupticker.ch. March 21, 2023.
- ^ a b "Polish-founded Family Office Invests in Swiss Drone Startup in a €23M B1 Round." The Recursive. August 19, 2024.
- ^ a b "Swiss drone maker Wingtra closes $25M Series B1 funding round." DroneDJ. August 21, 2024.
- ^ a b c d McNabb, M. (2025, July 10). "Wingtra Unveils WingtraRAY: A New Drone to Transform Aerial Surveying." DroneLife.
- ^ a b c "Wingtra Launches WingtraRAY Drone For Faster Surveying And Urban Flight Compliance." DroneXL. July 11, 2025.
- ^ a b "How Wingtra enables no-GCP drone surveys with 3 cm accuracy." DroneDJ. March 30, 2026.
- ^ "WingtraRAY secures Category 3 OOP Approval in the US." Wingtra AG. February 2026.
- ^ "About Wingtra." Wingtra AG.
- ^ "Wingtra und credentis gewinnen Swiss Excellence Product Award." Startupticker.ch. November 2016.
- ^ Swiss Excellence Stiftung, listing Wingtra as 2016 Product Award winner.