
Alumni Profile
Navigating in rough skies and harsh environments to deliver critical supplies.
Global positioning has revolutionized the connectivity of our transport and logistics infrastructure. Despite this, however, we are continually at the mercy of increasingly harsh weather conditions and need consistently to work in harsh environments where scientific or supply payloads are not easily deposited. Unmanned aircraft (drones and other autonomous aerial vehicles) have addressed this problem in an increasingly sophisticated way. One company that has made its mark is Black Swift Technologies.
As a young company, founded in 2011, Black Swift Technologies, has done something remarkable: they have developed a highly accurate and reliable unmanned aircraft system, the Black Swift S2, to fly scientific payloads into the harshest of environments: the Arctic, deserts, in areas of strong wind turbulence, etc. At the core of the system is the innovative SwiftCoreTM Flight Management System. The system’s avionics are designed to provide for fully autonomous flight and render a level of control to users that is groundbreaking.
Larta began working with Black Swift Technologies on their 2019 NOAA CAP award as they sought to commercialize their global positioning system and help tailor their technology development towards their targeted customers.
UN Sustainable Development Goals

Larta Programs
- NOAA-CAP
- Ag Innovation Showcase
Larta Products
- Commercialization Plan
- Go-To-Market
- Customer Discovery
Founders

Dr. Jack Elston
Founder & CEO
Black Swift

Dr. Maciej Stachura
Chief Technology Officer
Black Swift
Connect
Larta has helped us to expand our visibility and customer reach through great networking and market research --something very difficult to do on your own as a small business.

Dr. Jack Elston
Founder & CEO
Alumni News

January 28, 2022
Volcano-observing Drone Flights Open Door to Routine Hazard Monitoring
The ability to provide a “volcano forecast” could help reduce the significant health, safety, and even economic impacts of eruptions; they regularly disrupt aviation and the global supply chain we depend on.

January 30, 2022
NASA plans to use drones to monitor active volcanoes
NASA doesn’t only work on space projects: The agency also takes part in Earth-monitoring projects, particularly those related to the climate. Currently, it is working on a plan to use drones to monitor active volcanoes and give warnings of potential eruptions.
