ORANGE, Calif., May 12, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Soaring, a leader in autonomous aerial logistics for contested environments, today announced its participation in the U.S. Army XVIII Airborne Corps 44th Medical Brigade’s field training exercise focused on autonomous Class VIII (medical) resupply. Over several months, Soaring worked with the 44th Medical Brigade to plan and coordinate the validation effort, evaluating how unmanned aerial systems (UAS) can extend logistics in dispersed and contested environments where speed and access directly impact survivability.
Conducted under realistic field conditions, the validation assessed drone-enabled resupply against traditional ground-based methods, measuring response time, manpower requirements, and sustainment across multiple mission scenarios. When terrain or operational conditions prevented ground movement, drone-enabled resupply successfully restored the flow of critical supplies through repeated aerial deliveries, reinforcing its role as a complementary capability within the broader sustainment architecture.
During the exercise, Soaring deployed two of its M25 unmanned aircraft systems, which transported up to 25 lbs over a 10-kilometer round trip. Soaring trained Soldiers with no prior UAS experience to ensure their ability to assemble, launch, and recover the systems; achieved mission-capable proficiency within 4 days and demonstrated a setup-to-launch timeline of approximately 13 minutes.
Across repeated iterations, the exercise demonstrated the ability of autonomous aerial resupply to:
- Sustain delivery of critical medical supplies when ground routes were disrupted or denied.
- Execute multiple sequential deliveries to meet mission demand under payload constraints.
- Reduce personnel and vehicle exposure in contested or high-risk environments.
- Integrate with existing logistics systems and enable rapid Soldier adoption, supporting organic employment and scale while reducing reliance on external aviation support.
The exercise also highlighted the applicability of autonomous aerial resupply across additional sustainment classes, including Classes I, V, and IX.
“Effective sustainment at scale depends on aligning emerging technologies with real operational requirements,” said Fairborz Maseeh, Soaring’s Board Chairman. “Our focus is on working alongside the Army to help define and deliver autonomous logistics capabilities that are designed for real-world use and can be adopted, integrated, and sustained across the force.”
“Exercises like this are critical to validating how new capabilities perform under real operational conditions,” said Lieutenant Colonel Yu-Sheng Chen. “Our priority is ensuring units can sustain medical support when time, terrain, or threat conditions limit traditional resupply.”
By working with operational units under the XVIII Airborne Corps, Soaring demonstrated system performance against mission requirements in realistic field conditions rather than controlled environments. The exercise reflects a broader shift toward unit-driven experimentation to inform requirements and evaluate the role of emerging capabilities in operational settings.
Building on this effort, Soaring will continue to advance autonomous aerial resupply capabilities in support of the Army’s exploration of scalable solutions for medical and broader sustainment operations.
About Soaring
Soaring is an Orange, California–based developer of autonomous aerial logistics solutions serving both commercial and military markets. The company focuses on delivering scalable, mission-ready systems designed for contested and austere environments, with an emphasis on reliability, simplicity, and operational relevance. The company has supported operational experimentation and training with multiple Army units, including the 25th Infantry Division, the 101st Airborne Division, the Joint Readiness Training Center, and the 44th Medical Brigade under the XVIII Airborne Corps.
Article: Modern War Institute
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A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/18b5f242-d29f-4674-994a-decafb0c5972
