REGENT Viceroy Seaglider Completes First Human-Crewed Flight

REGENT Craft Inc. completed the first human-crewed flight of its all-electric Viceroy Seaglider prototype on September 2, 2026, over Narragansett Bay in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. The 30-second test flight reached an altitude of 33 feet above the water and covered a distance of 1,956 feet, validating the company’s wing-in-ground (WIG) effect technology for future commercial and defense applications.

In a press release issued following the flight, the company noted that the Viceroy is now the largest all-electric WIG craft to fly with people on board. The milestone follows a recent $240 million Series B funding round intended to scale manufacturing and prepare for customer deliveries.

Flight test-flights details and vehicle specifications

The Viceroy Seaglider is designed to carry 12 passengers and two crew members. According to REGENT, the production vehicle will be capable of reaching speeds up to 180 mph with a maximum range of 180 miles on a single charge.

During the September 2 test, the prototype demonstrated stable ground-effect flight. REGENT Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Billy Thalheimer described the event as the moment the team had been “envisioning and tirelessly pursuing for the past five and a half years.” Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Mike Klinker stated that the successful test “validates years of rigorous engineering and operational work” and provides the confidence needed to transition toward full-rate production.

Commercial and defense market expansion

The human-crewed flight follows earlier testing of the company’s autonomous drone variant, the Squire Seaglider, which completed its first defense-specific WIG flight earlier in 2026. REGENT has secured an expanded $15 million contract with the United States Marine Corps Warfighting Lab and established a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM).

On the commercial side, luxury coastal travel operator The Twenty Five serves as the domestic delivery and United States launch partner for Seaglider operations. The operator has placed an order for up to 60 Viceroy Seagliders.

Manufacturing and financial backing

To support its order backlog, REGENT completed construction of a 255,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Quonset, Rhode Island, in June 2026.

The company announced a $240 million Series B funding round on August 27, 2026. The round was co-led by Mare Liberum and AE Ventures, with debt capital provided by Erebor Bank. This latest investment brings the total equity and debt raised by REGENT to $340 million.

AirPro News analysis

We view the successful crewed flight of the Viceroy prototype as a critical de-risking event for REGENT. Transitioning from uncrewed sub-scale models to a human-crewed prototype is historically one of the most challenging phases for novel aerospace and maritime architectures. The ability to demonstrate stable flight in ground effect with personnel on board provides tangible data for regulatory bodies like the United States Coast Guard (USCG), which will oversee the maritime certification of these vehicles.

The rapid succession of the $240 million Series B announcement and the crewed flight milestone suggests strong alignment between the company’s engineering progress and its capitalization strategy. With a dedicated manufacturing facility already completed, REGENT appears positioned to execute its transition from prototyping to low-rate initial production, provided the regulatory framework for commercial WIG operations matures in tandem with the hardware.

Sources: REGENT Craft Inc.