Piasecki Aircraft unveils KARGO II medium-lift cargo UAV

Piasecki Aircraft Corp., a pioneer in vertical flight, introduced its latest autonomous vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) logistics product: KARGO II, a larger-capacity version of the KARGO UAV medium-lift unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) acquired from Kaman Air Vehicles in April 2025. Featuring substantial payload, drivetrain, and performance upgrades, KARGO II complements KARGO UAV to meet the varied demands of military and commercial operations.

Designed to operate in contested and remote environments, KARGO II retains the compact form factor of KARGO UAV while delivering 2x to 3x the payload capacity – from approximately 500 lb to 800 lb (227kg to 363kg) to more than 1,500 lb (680kg) – with improved range, airspeed, and mission flexibility. The system features a new optimized shaft-driven transmission along with larger rotors to enable the increased performance.

KARGO II builds on successful flight testing and demonstration milestones completed by KARGO UAV under early U.S. Army and Marine Corps contracts, including autonomous lift operations and integration with advanced flight control systems. Its launch comes as the U.S. Department of Defense and commercial logistics providers increasingly seek scalable, uncrewed alternatives to operate in high-risk environments and to reduce the cost of sustained flight operations.

"KARGO II reflects Piasecki's commitment to rapidly advancing autonomous vertical lift capabilities," said John Piasecki, CEO of Piasecki Aircraft Corp. "With the launch of this first major development spiral, we've created a more capable, scalable solution for autonomous logistics, designed to meet the evolving requirements of defense and commercial customers alike."

Commercial availability for KARGO II in domestic and international markets is planned for late 2027, subject to production and certification milestones. Initial demand for KARGO UAV and KARGO II exceeds 300 vehicles from sectors such as energy, logistics, disaster response, and remote infrastructure support, where legacy helicopter operations are often cost-prohibitive or logistically constrained.

"KARGO II is a direct response to operator feedback, validated use cases, and real-world mission needs," said Romin Dasmalchi, director of Cargo UAS programs at Piasecki. "We've engineered a platform that offers the range, lift, and reliability that commercial operators and military planners have been asking for."

KARGO II will be initially manufactured at Piasecki's state-of-the-art Heliplex facility in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, leveraging the company's long-standing expertise in VTOL system development and flight testing. Additional program partners and supply chain contributors will be announced in the coming months.