Vertical Aerospace Ltd. 2026 Q2 Earnings Call

Good morning, and welcome to Vertical Aerospace's First Half 2026 Business Update Call. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that during today's call, we will be making forward-looking statements. These statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially. Any forward-looking statements we make are based on assumptions as of today, and we undertake no obligation to update them as a result of new information or future events. We have posted an accompanying presentation to the investor relations section of our website, which contains additional information and cautionary language regarding forward-looking statements. For a more complete discussion of the risks and uncertainties affecting our business, please refer to the financial results and other materials filed with the SEC today. Today's call will be led by Stuart Simpson, our Chief Executive Officer.

Stuart will be joined by Simon Davies, our Chief Test Pilot, and Michael Cervenka, our Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer. Following prepared remarks, we will open the call for questions. With that, I will hand it over to Stuart.

Thank you, Gillian, and good morning, everyone. The first half of 2026 has been one of the most important periods in Vertical's history. In April, we completed the first two-way piloted transition flight under the oversight of the UK Civil Aviation Authority and have since completed multiple transition flights. In June, our final full-scale prototype began piloted flight testing, doubling our flight test capacity. This week, it also completed piloted transition. In July, we took that progress out of the test environment and into the public arena at the Farnborough International Airshow, where we made history as the first eVTOL flight demonstration at the air show. At Farnborough, the industry did not just see an aircraft complete a single carefully staged flight.

It saw Vertical fly in a real operating environment in front of regulators, customers, aerospace partners, government leaders, and investors, and then repeat that performance every day throughout the week. That distinction matters. It shows the maturity of our platform and moves the discussion from whether technology can work to whether it can be operated consistently, integrated safely, and ultimately commercialized at scale. Farnborough also reinforced the core principle we have long embraced. Successfully commercializing a new class of aircraft requires more than an advanced airframe. It requires a coordinated ecosystem spanning certification, operators, airspace integration, infrastructure, manufacturing, export finance, and long-term capital. Over the past several months, we have made meaningful progress across every one of those areas. Today, Simon will share the pilot's perspective on Farnborough and the progress of our flight test program.

Michael will then explain how we are building the broader ecosystem around VX4, and I will close with the significance of the U.K. government support, our financial position, and the key milestones ahead. Before I hand over to Si, we would like to share a short film on Farnborough.