ERC System

ERC System (eRC-System GmbH) is a German aerospace startup based in Ottobrunn, near Munich, founded in 2020 to develop hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft for logistics and transport missions it describes as "critical" — military resupply, offshore and remote supply, disaster response, and patient transport. Trade press coverage places its founding in 2019 rather than 2020; this page follows the company's own "Company" page, which states 2020.

What the company builds

ERC's product line centres on the Victor family of uncrewed, hybrid-electric lift-and-cruise cargo aircraft, led by the Victor U250, unveiled at ILA Berlin in June 2026, and a separate military-labelled variant the company calls the Victor U250-M. ERC has also flown two full-mass prototypes ahead of Victor: Echo, which first flew in 2023, and Romeo, a roughly 2.7-tonne demonstrator that began hover testing near Munich in November 2025. The company's roadmap also lists Charlie C700, a crewed hybrid-electric lift-and-cruise aircraft intended for patient and passenger transport, on an EASA certification path.

Programme status

ERC backs the Victor U250 with IABG, a German aerospace research group, and in June 2026 signed a letter of intent with Rheinmetall and the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia to establish Victor U250 production in western Germany, with Rheinmetall contributing aviation-certification and unmanned-systems expertise. ERC has submitted a Design Verification Report under the SAIL IV stage of EASA's SORA process for the aircraft and targets first flight of a Victor U250 prototype in the second half of 2026, with first deliveries planned for 2028.