Vertical Aerospace taps Astronics for Valo power system – certification clears

Vertical Aerospace (EVTL) named Astronics as its supplier for the primary and secondary power-distribution systems on the Valo electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. Astronics, an aerospace electronics firm, was picked after a down-select process. The parts are already on the test bench inside Vertical's iron-bird rig.

The Valo is a four-passenger eVTOL designed for short-haul urban routes. Vertical holds roughly 1,500 pre-orders from airlines and operators including American Airlines, Japan Airlines, and Bristow Group. Those orders depend on type certification from the UK Civil Aviation Authority and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

Astronics wires, distributes, and monitors the Valo's onboard electrical load across 540-volt high-voltage and 28-volt low-voltage buses. The role is a known certification hurdle: redundancy requirements force multiple independent electrical loops, and failure on one loop must not cascade. Astronics holds DO-254 design assurance Level A and DO-178C software certification for aviation safety. That eases the regulator's audit path for those subsystems, one person familiar with the selection said.

Vertical's certification drive is the central story for the stock. The equity trades near cash-adjusted book value. Analysts at Canaccord Genuity and RBC Capital hold price targets that imply triple-digit upside. Those targets depend on certification timelines holding. A slip on the Astronics integration – or a regulator question about power-bus separation – could reset that timeline.

The Valo first flew tethered in 2020 and made a full transition flight in 2023. Vertical targets type certification in 2026, with entry into service shortly after. The Astronics deal does not change that date. It removes one supplier variable from the critical path.

Vertical ended the session up 2.8% on the news. Volume was roughly half the 30-day average, suggesting the move was not a broad re-rating of the certification story.