Vertical Aerospace Opens Valo eVTOL Assembly Centre at Cotswold

Vertical Aerospace officially opened its dedicated Aircraft Assembly Centre at Cotswold Airport on September 25, 2026, marking the company’s transition from prototype development to early-stage manufacturing. The facility will produce certification-conforming Valo electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as the manufacturers targets UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Type Certification in 2029.

In a press release issued to coincide with the United Kingdom’s National Manufacturing Day, Vertical Aerospace detailed a £1.5 million investment in the Kemble site. The opening follows a September 24, 2026, announcement that the company has initiated a review of strategic alternatives and appointed Jefferies as a financial advisor to support its next phase of development.

Facility capabilities and production timeline

The new Aircraft Assembly Centre adds 60,000 square feet of operational space, bringing Vertical Aerospace’s total footprint at Cotswold Airport to 130,000 square feet. The facility is designed to assemble up to 25 Valo aircraft annually during the early production phase.

Assembly of the first certification-conforming aircraft is expected to begin in Q4 2027. These aircraft will be used for compliance demonstration and verification testing with the UK CAA. Vertical Aerospace CEO Stuart Simpson stated that the facility provides the capability needed to assemble certification aircraft and support initial customer deliveries while maintaining capital discipline ahead of higher-volume production.

The company expects to announce plans for a separate, full-scale production facility for higher-volume manufacturing in Q4 2026.

Economic impact and defense applications

The facility opening drew attention from UK government and industry officials. Minister for Reindustrialisation Blair McDougall MP and Make UK Chief Executive Stephen Phipson highlighted the project’s alignment with national manufacturing goals.

“The opening of Vertical Aerospace’s new Aircraft Assembly Centre at Kemble is exactly the kind of investment we want to see more of as we work to reindustrialise Britain, creating high-skilled local jobs and strengthening our manufacturing base,” McDougall said in the company’s release.

Independent analysis by Frontier Economics projects that Vertical Aerospace could anchor 2,000 high-value jobs and contribute an estimated £3 billion annually to the UK economy by 2035.

Beyond commercial passenger applications, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed interest in the manufacturer’s hybrid-electric and autonomous capabilities. Vertical Aerospace plans to retrofit a prototype aircraft for hybrid-electric flight testing in H1 2027 to support these defense evaluations.

AirPro News analysis

The back-to-back announcements on September 24 and September 25 highlight the dual tracks eVTOL developers must navigate: advancing physical industrialization while securing the capital required to reach certification. Opening the Aircraft Assembly Centre demonstrates tangible progress toward the 2029 CAA certification target and provides a dedicated space for the rigorous compliance testing required for passenger operations.

However, the concurrent strategic review and appointment of Jefferies indicate that we are entering a critical capitalization phase for the sector. Transitioning from prototype assembly to a planned capacity of 25 aircraft annually requires significant resources. The stated strategy of maintaining capital discipline at the Cotswold facility while deferring the announcement of a larger, full-scale production site until Q4 2026 suggests a phased approach to scaling that aligns with the realities of current aerospace investments markets.

Sources: Vertical Aerospace