A recently launched Madeira-based startup is positioning itself to be on the forefront of military technology.
In an interview, CEO Zachary Green said China and Russia have surpassed the United States in terms of developing defense technology, such as missiles, that travel at hypersonic speeds. For perspective, commercial airlines fly at subsonic speeds, while most military vehicles can travel as supersonic speed. Hypersonic ramps it up one step further.
By not having a readily available supply of hypersonic technology the United States is vulnerable because others could attack us before we'd even have the ability to respond, Green says.
He's billing his new startup Velontra as the solution.
Launched in January, Velontra's team is working to create innovative defense technology at a fraction of the time and cost their competitors can. The team is lean but experienced.
In addition to Green, who is a seasoned startup executive and former Marine, it includes two rocket scientists, a longtime Cincinnati area attorney and a former two-star general. Here's more information on each member:
- Zachary Green, CEO: Green is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and founder of MN8 LumAware/Firefox, which makes glow-in-the-dark coatings that firefighters use when they’re in dark or smoky buildings. Under his leadership, MN8 LumAware/Firefox successfully raised roughly $5 million in venture capital funding and generated $30 million in organic revenue.
- Rob Keane, COO: Keane is a Marine Corps veteran and graduate of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, who also spent time at GE Aviation. He helps spearhead Velontra's development efforts.
- Joel Darin, CTO: Also a GE Aviation alumni, Darin has a wide-ranging background in the creation of afterburners, which increase the thrust of jet engines.
- Mark Longnecker, chief legal officer: Longnecker is a Harvard-educated attorney with more than 30 years of experience representing Cincinnati businesses.
- Maj. Gen. Craig Whelden, president: Whelden was the youngest general in the U.S. Army, who also spent nine years as a member of the Senior Executive Service with the U.S. Marine Corps. Based in South Carolina, he joined Velontra in March.
Since Velontra's team is lean, they don't face the same bureaucratic slowdowns that their peers might, Green said. For instance, Keane and Darin were able to develop and create a fully functional ramjet engine in 22 days, something Green said is practically unheard of.
Their next task, Green said, is to create an afterburner for a jet engine, which impacts its thrust to boost its speed. That development process will take roughly a year and be done at the company's new aircraft test facility outside Dayton that will position Velontra near the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
And while Velontra aims to create new military technology, Green said the company hopes to serve a business-to-business function as well through the development of supersonic delivery drones that would sail through low orbits. This would allow companies, like Amazon or Uber Eats, to rapidly ship products to customers, he said.
It was also position Velontra to go head-to-head with Elon Musk's SpaceX, though Green argues his team could get drones up at a fraction of the cost SpaceX can.
"We want to be the market leader is supersonic low Earth delivery vehicles," Green said.
To reach its goal, Green said Velontra will need to raise roughly $70 million in the next couple years and is currently engaged in conversations with Silicon Valley-based firms that Green said "can carry that load for us."
