Federal Programs & Engagement
Building the domestic small-UAS base.
Active engagement across IBAS, National Guard, Cornerstone OTA, and the Blue UAS pathway to field U.S.-assembled aircraft for the small-unit fight.
Program Overview
Where Elite Aerial Technology fits.
Elite Aerial Technology is a Kansas small business engaged across four federal channels to close the gap between the demand signal for domestically produced small UAS and the current supplier base. Each program below is either actively engaged or being positioned for near-term contracting.
Industrial Base Analysis & Sustainment (IBAS)
Domestic UAS propulsion & small-UAS capacity
The Army's Industrial Base Analysis & Sustainment program funds domestic capacity for critical warfighter items where the U.S. supplier base is thin or foreign-dependent. Small-UAS motors and airframes fit the profile directly: current propulsion is heavily reliant on foreign brushless motors and rare-earth magnets, and airframe production capacity does not meet projected demand.
Elite Aerial Technology has an active engagement targeting an IBAS pitch for domestic small-UAS motor and magnet capacity through Elite Kinetic Solutions, paired with Elite's own airframe assembly line for Group 1 platforms.
Cornerstone OTA
Other Transaction Authority · 10 U.S.C. §4022
The Cornerstone OTA consortium is one of the primary contracting vehicles the Department of Defense uses to accelerate small-business technology onto the warfighter, bypassing traditional FAR-based timelines. Awards are made under Other Transaction Authority (10 U.S.C. §4022) with rapid prototyping and follow-on production potential.
Elite is preparing a Cornerstone Initiative Request (CIR) package to field the Exodus-8 as a domestically produced Group 1 reconnaissance UAS \u2014 with a follow-on runway for the Exodus-13 modular ISR platform.
Blue UAS Pathway
DIU-cleared aircraft for the small-unit operator
The Defense Innovation Unit's Blue UAS Cleared List is the operator's shortlist \u2014 the aircraft a warfighter can buy today without additional authorization. Since July 2025, AUVSI Green UAS certification auto-grants Blue UAS Cleared List status, opening a faster path for domestic small-business platforms.
Elite is preparing both the Exodus-8 and Exodus-13 for Green UAS certification, which includes cybersecurity, supply-chain, and airworthiness reviews. NDAA sourcing review and Section 889 supply-chain screening are in progress in parallel.
National Guard Engagement
State readiness & domestic response missions
National Guard units are the connective tissue between the active-component force and the state, local, and tribal responders working the same terrain. Their small-UAS demand cuts across tactical training, border-security support, wildfire response, and disaster relief \u2014 all missions where a U.S.-assembled, sustainable-in-the-field platform is a real advantage.
Elite is positioning the Exodus-8 for close-in ISR and force-protection missions and the Exodus-13 for persistent thermal observation on the SLED / public-safety side of Guard operations.
Elite Kinetic Solutions
Domestic brushless-motor production
Elite Kinetic Solutions is Elite Aerial Technology's in-house propulsion arm, structured to build domestic capacity for small-UAS brushless motors. The pilot-line concept targets automated production of tactical drone motors with in-house magnetization workflow for 1155 / 900 Kv designs \u2014 the exact class of motor now dominant in foreign small-UAS supply chains.
The upside is compounding: every motor built domestically reduces the foreign-supply attack surface for both Elite's own platforms and the wider U.S. small-UAS ecosystem.
Next Step
Request the full program brief.
Program managers, prime-contractor partners, and consortium leads: get the detailed capability statement and program-specific briefing package.
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