AIRO Announces First U.S. Sale of RQ-35 and RQ-70 Unmanned Aircraft Systems

MCLEAN, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AIRO Group Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: AIRO), a next-generation aerospace and defense company, today announced the first U.S. sale of its drone platforms: an order from a U.S. government customer for its RQ-35 and RQ-70 unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) in support of a specific mission requirement. This milestone order marks AIRO’s entry into the U.S. drone market while establishing a foundation for past performance with the U.S. Government, an important factor in future award considerations.

The first U.S. drone order follows the July 2026 addition of the RQ-35 to the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) Blue UAS List, which cleared the platform for procurement across U.S. government agencies.

“We have tremendous confidence in our technology, our design and our manufacturing, and this order demonstrates it,” said Joe Burns, Chief Executive Officer of AIRO. “U.S. government buyers hold drone suppliers to some of the most rigorous security and supply chain standards anywhere. The RQ-35 cleared that bar, and this first order is the proof.”

Building on the RQ-35’s proven performance with NATO and allied forces, the RQ-70 responds to growing demand for longer-range ISR and greater mission endurance. Together, the platforms broaden AIRO’s ability to support diverse allied defense missions, strengthen its position in the defense drone market and expand its customer base.

“Many drone companies start in the U.S. and work to prove themselves abroad. AIRO did the reverse,” said Dr. Chirinjeev Kathuria, Executive Chairman of AIRO. “The RQ-35 earned its reputation with allied forces in real operations before it reached a U.S. customer. That gives AIRO a position across U.S., NATO and allied markets that we intend to build on.”

About AIRO Group Holdings, Inc.

AIRO Group Holdings is a next-generation aerospace and defense platform driving innovation across defense and commercial markets. Headquartered in McLean, Va., with operations in the U.S., Canada and Denmark, AIRO combines global reach with deep technical expertise. Through a vertically integrated model, AIRO delivers mission-critical solutions centered on drone platforms, advanced avionics, integrated training capabilities and embedded autonomy.

Forward looking statements

The statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. You can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “believes,” “expects,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “seeks,” “intends,” “plans,” “estimates,” or “anticipates,” or similar expressions which concern our strategy, plans, projections or intentions. These forward-looking statements may be included throughout this press release and include, but are not limited to, statements relating to the timing of delivery under the order described herein; AIRO’s expectations regarding future U.S. government procurement opportunities; the development, production, scaling and anticipated performance and capabilities of the RQ-35 Heidrun and RQ-70 Dainn platforms; the development and scaling of AIRO’s production capacity; the demand for, market acceptance of and opportunity of AIRO’s products and services; AIRO’s ability to execute its strategic initiatives across U.S., NATO, and allied markets; AIRO’s strategy to grow its global defense platform; and other statements that are not historical fact. By their nature, forward-looking statements are not statements of historical fact or guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions or changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict or quantify, including those described in the section titled “Risk Factors” in AIRO’s most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), as well as other filings AIRO may make with the SEC in the future. Forward-looking statements represent AIRO’s management’s beliefs and assumptions only as of the date such statements are made. AIRO undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this press release to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.