US firm's drone with 1,000-mile range can conduct high risk missions

Alameda-based company Pyka is developing and testing the DropShip drone, designed to operate in highly dangerous and contested environments without risking aircrews or expensive aircraft. The DropShip can carry significant cargo loads—up to 500 pounds over 1,000 miles or travel more than 3,500 miles unladen—and is capable of launching and recovering from austere locations without runways, such as dirt or gravel roads. Its modular design supports payloads up to 650 pounds, including intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) equipment and waveform-agnostic communication relays, enabling assured connectivity in remote or denied areas. Pyka positions DropShip as a cost-effective alternative to legacy unmanned aerial systems (UAS) that cost $10–$30 million and are vulnerable to cheaper countermeasures. The drone aims to solve contested logistics challenges by enabling missions that would otherwise be too risky, supporting distributed e-commerce, regional fulfillment, humanitarian aid, disaster relief, and expeditionary operations.