Alpine 4 Holdings Inc (OTCQB:ALPP) has announced that its subsidiaries, Impossible Aerospace Corporation and Vayu (US) Inc, plan to merge to become Vayu Aerospace Corporation Inc.
Vayu Aerospace will be located in Ann Arbor, Michigan at the current Vayu facility. The merger is expected to be completed by October 1, 2021, the company said. Alpine 4 initially acquired Impossible Aerospace in the fourth quarter of 2020.
The company noted that Quality Circuit Assembly Inc, another of Alpine 4's subsidiaries, will still manufacture and assemble the components for the company’s planned US-1 airframe and will also be adding many new components to its G1 and G2 airframes as well.
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"This blending of talent, resources, and technologies will further Vayu's vision of building the most robust, reliable, and capable aircraft available on the market today,” Vayu CEO Daniel Pepper said in a statement. “We couldn't be happier with this solid foundation underfoot and bright future ahead."
In an accompanying letter to shareholders, Alpine 4 CEO Kent Wilson explained the benefits of the Impossible Aero/Vayu combination.
“Various disconnected and non-uniform hardware pieces in the US-1 and G1 present various supply chain issues in a post COVID-19 world,” Wilson wrote. “Maximizing the supply chain efforts between airframes will lower cost, increase product availability, and enhance Vayu's ability to service aircraft in the field or in one of our repair facilities.”
“The drone aerospace sector is extremely capital intensive due to rigorous R&D outlays that need to be realized to improve and upgrade airframes and avionic platforms. [Impossible Aerospace] and Vayu combined have spent over $20 million on building out their airframes to bring them to market. This type of outlay will need to continue for a period of time and combining both airframes into one development team will greatly enhance the uniformity of the airframes and increase our R&D efficiency.”
Wilson continued: “Combining the suite of avionics packages into one unified platform allows for a more detailed and nimble flying aircraft, a more user-friendly operating environment, one training system for customers and a more secure communications platform for US-1, US-2 and G1 and G2 ... Combining the two operating companies into one company within a single location is expected to reduce G&A expenses by 20% and diffuse future G&A capital expenditures by 40%."
Impossible Aerospace CEO Spencer Gore added: 'I am very excited by this next chapter in Impossible Aerospace's history. This merger will allow the companies to leverage each other's experience and IP to produce exciting new products. The collaboration has existed for quite some time now, but I'm glad to see it made official.”
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