Windracers launches Malawi base for aid drone missions
June 28, 2025
UK autonomous aircraft specialist Windracers has set up a new operational hub in Malawi to test and demonstrate long-range cargo drone missions focused on humanitarian relief.
The new base, located at Kasungu Airfield in Malawi’s Central Region, includes a purpose-built hangar and will serve as a staging ground for a series of flights using the company’s uncrewed aircraft, the Windracers ULTRA.
The project is being developed in coordination with the Malawi Civil Aviation Authority and the Department of Meteorological Services.
Together, they will trial real-world scenarios in which Windracers ULTRA delivers essential supplies to remote areas, including parachute drops and cargo runs for emergency aid and medical logistics.
Windracers ULTRA ‘low-cost means of delivering humanitarian aid’
Stephen Wright, founder and group executive chairman of Windracers, said: “We developed ULTRA with the idea of providing low-cost means of delivering humanitarian aid to hard-to-reach locations for people who need help the most.
“Flights from Kasungu will support a range of humanitarian and development use cases, including medical logistics, environmental monitoring and disaster response. We’re very grateful to our partners in Malawi for helping bring this to life.”
The Windracers ULTRA aircraft is a twin-engine fixed-wing UAV with a 10-metre wingspan and a payload capacity of 150 kg. It boasts a range of up to 1,000 km and is equipped with the company’s proprietary autopilot and mission control software.
ULTRA has carried out resupply missions in Ukraine, conducted environmental surveys in Antarctica, and flown parcel deliveries to islands off the UK coast.
It has also supported wildfire response efforts and parachuted medical supplies into isolated areas.
