Swift Engineering SULE High-Altitude, Long-Endurance Platform Achieves New Altitude Record of 67,000 Feet 

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. — Swift Engineering, a leading innovator in advanced solutions for unmanned aviation as well as a range of other critical applications, has announced that its SULE (Swift Ultra Long Endurance) aircraft achieved a new altitude record in a flight that reached 67,000 ft. MSL (Mean Sea Level) on July 26, 2025. 

The groundbreaking, 24-hour flight continues to unveil new possibilities for scientific research and environmental monitoring as well as defense and aerospace applications. SULE took off from and landed at Spaceport America in New Mexico. The successful flight exceeded the previous altitude record for the aircraft which had achieved a level of 55,904 ft.

Swift Engineering is participating in a two-year program with NASA focused on the 
development of unmanned aircraft that can achieve extended endurance with decreased cost and increased data capture capabilities. The company recently won a Phase II award providing additional financial support for SULE design, fabrication and flight testing.

“We are very proud of the recognition and support for the SULE platform that weve received from NASA,” said Hamed Khalkhali, President of Swift Engineering. “NASA sees clear and compelling benefits that will accrue from the development of these high-altitude, unmanned vehicles for a range of applications including the monitoring of ecological changes, research on climate patterns and enhanced emergency management.”

The Swift suite of UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) spans the shorter range, rapidly deployable VTOL (Vertical Take-off and Landing) Swift Crane to the longer endurance, longer range, gas-powered Swift Accipiter suitable for most military and law enforcement applications.

SULE delivers an even longer range/endurance platform with a 72-foot wingspan and 15-pound payload capacity that can provide seamless communications relay capabilities to all Swift platforms as well big-picture awareness beyond the range of Crane and Accipiter.

For complete information on Swift Engineering, visit www.swiftengineering.com or email hkhalkhali@swiftengineering.com <mailto:hkhalkhali@swiftengineering.com>.