On August 6, 2026, Ampaire announced that it had started its participation in the eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP) of the US Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration. The flight tests are taking place in Utah under a specific initiative called uFLY, part of the eIPP program.
On August 3, 2026, Ampaire ferried its EEL aircraft from Long Beach, California, to Salt Lake City, Utah, covering 648 miles (1,042 kilometers) in 4 hours 18 minutes using a single battery charge. Three days later, on August 6, the EEL flew a further 1 hour 45 minutes to cover the 240 miles (386 kilometers) between Salt Lake City and Cedar City (CDC) in southwestern Utah. The itinerary was completed with the return flight to Ampaire's base in Long Beach.
The EEL is a modified Cessna 337 Skymaster retrofitted with a hybrid-electric powertrain. In a press release, Ampaire test pilot Zack Kraus said the additional electric boost power helped the aircraft climb through conditions that would have been much more limiting in a conventional-engine-only configuration over Utah's mountainous terrain and high-density-altitude conditions.
During the program, Ampaire and state officials will assess the operational readiness and infrastructure needs required to introduce hybrid-electric regional air routes within Utah and across neighboring states. The uFLY program is one of eight projects selected by the FAA to advance the development of advanced air mobility in the United States.
Ampaire is planning follow-up test flights in Utah using an Eco Caravan aircraft, a Cessna Grand Caravan airframe retrofitted with an AMP-H570 hybrid-electric propulsion system. Described as a technological step up from the EEL prototype, the Eco Caravan is intended to be Ampaire's first commercial product.
