Fixed-Wing HAPS (Solar & Fuel-Cell Aircraft)

Fixed-Wing HAPS (Solar & Fuel-Cell Aircraft)

Fixed-wing High Altitude Platform Systems (HAPS) are large, extremely lightweight, uncrewed aircraft designed to loiter in the stratosphere (roughly 60,000-70,000 ft) for weeks to months at a time, most flying on solar power stored overnight in batteries; a smaller group uses hydrogen fuel cells instead. Positioned as a middle layer between conventional UAVs and satellites, they’re pitched for persistent telecommunications relay (direct-to-handset coverage, disaster-recovery connectivity), Earth observation, and defense ISR — at lower cost and higher resolution than a satellite, and with far greater endurance than a battery-powered drone.

Entries

  • AALTO HAPS — Airbus subsidiary (Farnborough, UK) operating Zephyr; 67-day continuous-flight world record (Apr 2025); $100M Japanese-consortium investment led by NTT DOCOMO/Space Compass
  • Prismatic Ltd — BAE Systems subsidiary (Alton, UK) building PHASA-35; 24-hour flight above 66,000 ft (Dec 2024); targeting limited operational service from 2026
  • Mira Aerospace — Space42 subsidiary (Abu Dhabi, UAE), formerly a UAVOS–Bayanat JV; ApusNeo18; opened MENA’s first HAPS manufacturing facility (May 2025)
  • Kea Aerospace — Christchurch, NZ; Kea Atmos reached 56,284 ft on an 8h20m flight (Feb 2025), the first Southern Hemisphere solar stratospheric flight
  • Swift Engineering — San Clemente, CA; Matsushita International Corp-owned diversified aerospace firm; SULE reached 67,000 ft on a 24-hour flight (Jul 2025)
  • NewSpace Research & Technologies — Bengaluru, India; iDEX-backed solar HAPS for the Indian Navy; national endurance record of 27 hours at 26,000 ft (May 2024)
  • Stratospheric Platforms Ltd / World Mobile Stratospheric — UK-founded hydrogen-powered HAPS for direct-to-handset 5G; acquired Aug 2025 by World Mobile + Protelindo; Islander antenna flight tests mid-2026

Documented elsewhere on this site: AeroVironment operates Sunglider (formerly Horus), a solar-electric HAPS developed through its HAPSMobile joint venture with SoftBank — 80m wingspan, ~65,000 ft operating altitude, flight-tested through October 2024. Full entry lives in the Robotics/Aerial Drones section since AeroVironment’s core business is broader tactical UAS and loitering munitions.

Companies

Startups & Development Partners

Company HQ Stage Mission
AALTO HAPS UK (Farnborough) Pre-commercial (Airbus subsidiary; 2026 Japan service target) Zephyr solar-electric HAPS; telecom relay and Earth observation
Prismatic Ltd UK (Alton, Hampshire) Pre-operational (BAE Systems subsidiary) PHASA-35 solar-electric HAPS; ISR and comms, positioned as a lower-cost satellite alternative
Mira Aerospace UAE (Abu Dhabi) Active flight-test (Space42 subsidiary) ApusNeo18 solar-electric HAPS; telecom, EO, RF sensing
Kea Aerospace New Zealand (Christchurch) Private, pre-revenue Kea Atmos solar stratospheric imaging aircraft
Swift Engineering USA (San Clemente, CA) Private (Matsushita International Corp-owned); HAPS is one program among several SULE (Swift Ultra Long Endurance) solar HAPS for EO, comms relay, defense ISR
NewSpace Research & Technologies India (Bengaluru) Private, iDEX government-backed Solar-powered HAPS for Indian Navy stratospheric ISR, plus a broader defense-drone portfolio
World Mobile Stratospheric UK (London; successor to Cambridge-founded SPL) Pre-flight-test (JV of World Mobile + Protelindo, acquired SPL Aug 2025) Hydrogen fuel-cell HAPS carrying a phased-array antenna for direct-to-handset 5G

Incumbents

Ticker Company Relevance
AVAV AeroVironment Operates Sunglider HAPS via SoftBank HAPSMobile JV; core business is broader tactical UAS/loitering munitions — full entry
AIR Airbus Majority owner of AALTO HAPS (Zephyr program)
BA.L BAE Systems Owner of Prismatic Ltd (PHASA-35 program)

Entries

  • AALTO HAPS — AALTO HAPS is an Airbus subsidiary based in Farnborough, UK that operates the Zephyr solar-electric stratospheric aircraft, which set a 67-day continuous flight record in April 2025 and has received a $100 million investment from a Japanese consortium led by NTT DOCOMO.
  • Kea Aerospace — Christchurch, New Zealand-based developer of the solar-powered Kea Atmos stratospheric aircraft, which reached 56,284 feet on an 8-hour-20-minute flight in February 2025, launched from a driving electric car.
  • Mira Aerospace — Mira Aerospace is an Abu Dhabi, UAE-based subsidiary of Space42 (formed from the Bayanat–Yahsat merger) that builds the ApusNeo solar-electric HAPS aircraft; it opened MENA's first HAPS manufacturing facility in May 2025 and flew Europe's first civilian-approved HAPS flight in December 2025.
  • NewSpace Research & Technologies — Bengaluru-based Indian defense-tech startup developing a solar-powered High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) for the Indian Navy under an iDEX contract, having set a national endurance record with a 27-hour, 26,000-foot flight in May 2024.
  • Prismatic Ltd — Prismatic Ltd is a Hampshire, UK-based BAE Systems subsidiary building the PHASA-35 solar-electric HAPS aircraft, which has flown above 66,000 feet for 24 continuous hours from Spaceport America and is targeting limited operational service from 2026.
  • Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL) / World Mobile Stratospheric — UK-founded Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL), developer of a hydrogen-powered, uncrewed stratospheric aircraft carrying a large phased-array 5G antenna, was acquired in August 2025 by World Mobile and Indonesian tower operator Protelindo and now operates as World Mobile Stratospheric (WMS), with Islander aircraft flight testing scheduled for mid-2026.
  • Swift Engineering — San Clemente, California-based diversified aerospace engineering firm whose solar-electric SULE (Swift Ultra Long Endurance) aircraft reached a company-record 67,000 feet in a 24-hour flight in July 2025, one of several unmanned-systems product lines alongside defense and DARPA work.