RICHMOND, VA — Tidal Flight, a startup developing a new hybrid-electric amphibious aircraft, yesterday announced plans to invest $538,000 to expand the company’s operations in Virginia. Tidal Flight will lease 13,000 square feet of hangar space at Chesapeake Regional Airport and hire an additional six employees, tripling the company’s existing workforce.
Incubated in Hampton through the REaKTOR program in 2023, Tidal Flight is seeking to reshape coastal air travel through its Polaris aircraft, a hybrid-electric seaplane designed to carry from nine to 12 passengers on flights of 100 miles to 500 miles.
Built with modern composite materials and an innovative power system, Polaris is expected to consume 85% less fuel than a traditional seaplane, lower operating costs by 40%, reduce takeoff noise by approximately 20 dB and nearly eliminate corrosion.
The new hangar space will enable Tidal to execute research, development and testing of full-scale subsystems.
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) worked with the Hampton Roads Alliance and the City of Chesapeake to secure the project for Virginia.
“We are excited to expand our presence here in Hampton Roads. This is a region with a strong combination of aerospace and naval engineering talent, incredible maritime assets and deep defense sector presence that make it a perfect place to build the aircraft manufacturer of the future,” said Tidal Flight co-founder and CEO Jude Augustine.
VEDP will support Tidal Flight’s job creation through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program, which provides consultative services and funding to companies creating new jobs in order to support employee recruitment and training activities. As a business incentive supporting economic development, the state-funded VJIP reduces the human resource costs of new and expanding companies.
Tidal Flight signed two significant deals last November. Seaplane Safaris is committed to adding five Polaris Amphibian hybrid-electric aircraft, valued at more than $30 million, to its fleet.
WingTips, a regional shared charter company in Texas, is committed to adding 20 Polaris seaplanes, valued at more than $100 million, to its operational network.
