Doroni Aerospace

Doroni Aerospace is developing a safe, affordable personal aircraft.

This is a type of Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Aircraft, or “eVTOL.” And it’s intended for the fast-growing Urban Air Mobility market. Morgan Stanley predicts this market will be worth one trillion dollars by 2040 and nine trillion dollars by 2050.

Once available, anyone will be able to own, fly, and store a Doroni Aerospace aircraft. All they’ll need is a driver’s license and training-course completion to get started.

Doroni has completed a prototype of its H1-X aircraft, and completed more than seventy manned test flights. It’s also partnered with key technology companies like Honeywell and Garmin.

The company has raised eight million dollars and secured nine critical patents. Now it’s raising an additional three million dollars to advance development of its full-scale prototype and begin test flights later this year. Doroni aims to receive certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and begin production by 2027.

Doroni’s creation is described as a new class of personal aviation. As the company says, it’s creating a “cutting-edge flying vehicle that is as functional as it is stunning.”

The aircraft features a compact design that fits in a standard two-car garage. It can take off and land without any special pads or unique infrastructure. And it can integrate seamlessly into existing electric-vehicle (EV) charging systems.

Eight independent motors ensure maximum stability during flight, and two electric thrusters enable a smooth transition from vertical to forward flight. The aircraft features a 360-degree anti-collision sensor system to avoid obstacles and a ballistic parachute in the event of an emergency.

The H1-X can fly at speeds of up to 120 miles per hour and travel sixty miles on a single charge. Charge time is just twenty-five minutes and flight time on a full charge is forty minutes.

Team Background

David Grambill - Chief Aerospace Engineer

David has extensive aerospace-engineering experience. He began his career as a structural engineer with General Dynamics, a defense company. He then became an airframe design contractor with PDS Tech, a staffing company.

From there, David spent seventeen years with Boeing, working as a structural engineer and analyst. After that he was a design quality leader with Leonardo, a defense company, auditing design processes for Federal Aviation Administration certification and approval.

More recently, he was a chief engineer with XTI Aircraft, an aviation component manufacturing company. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering from The University of Texas at Arlington and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.

Doron Merdinger - Founder & CEO

Doron first gained experience in the aerospace industry while serving in the Israeli Air Force.

From there, he joined Hazorfirm, a retail business selling luxury artifacts, first as its Marketing Director and later its CEO.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in International Finance from NYU.

Eyal Segal - Chief Financial Officer

Eyal has more than twenty years of financial experience.

Before joining Doroni earlier this year, he spent six years with Teledyne, a defense and space-manufacturing company, serving as its Director of Finance and Director of Financial Planning. Before that, he was a controller at Kenshoo, an advertising-services company.

Earlier in his career, Eyal was a senior associate with PricewaterhouseCoopers and held the same position with Ernst & Young. He also served six years in the Israeli Defense Forces as an officer in the Logistics unit.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and an MBA from Tel Aviv University.

Co-Investors