Exel and FLYING WHALES celebrate new aerospace production capability for LCA60T airship program
Exel Composites has developed a new purpose-equipped production capability at our factory in Joensuu, Finland, to support its collaboration with FLYING WHALES, the French-Canadian aeronautical company developing the innovative LCA60T airship. The new production environment provides the process control, repeatability, and capacity required for highly demanding applications such as aerospace.
The collaboration between the companies has now moved into process validation, a key step toward producing the pull-wound composite tubes for the first LCA60T airship frame. The milestone was marked on 30 September 2026 with an opening celebration of the new production lines, attended by the CEOs and key project representatives from both companies. The LCA60T is a 200-metre-long vertical take-off airship designed to transport up to 60 tons of cargo in landlocked territories. The airship’s frame uses around 80 kilometers of pull-wound carbon fiber tubes to achieve the required combination of lightweight construction and mechanical performance.
The new production area in Joensuu offers additional manufacturing space for producing very long tubes and enhanced control of conditions such as temperature, humidity, and air cleanliness. The milestone follows early fiber, resin and lay-up testing, as well as the 2024 agreement that deepened the collaboration between Exel and FLYING WHALES. The area includes several pull-winding lines, drawing on our decades of global experience in continuous composite manufacturing. Pull-winding combines the design flexibility needed to engineer lightweight, high-strength tubes with the consistency and cost efficiency of continuous production.
During process validation, Exel will demonstrate that the pull-winding process can consistently produce the composite tubes required for the first LCA60T airship frame with the required quality and repeatability. In aerospace applications, this validation is particularly important, as it demonstrates that the equipment and process parameters used to produce each component can consistently meet the tight tolerances and quality requirements required to reach the highest safety standard.
“This milestone is an important step in preparing the LCA60T program for industrial readiness. It illustrates the strength of the industrial consortium behind the program and our shared ambition to transform what is possible in aeronautics. Exel’s advanced composite expertise, process discipline and production capability are essential as we move toward the next phases of the program,” said Vincent Guibout, CEO of FLYING WHALES. “The progress made in Joensuu reflects the commitment and close collaboration of everyone involved.”
“Moving into this next phase together with FLYING WHALES reflects the strength of our long-term partnership and the dedication of our Joensuu team,” said Paul Sohlberg, CEO & President of Exel Composites. “The new production area strengthens our manufacturing capabilities and supports the aerospace-level process control, repeatability and expertise required for demanding applications such as the LCA60T.”
Sohlberg continued: “I would like to thank the FLYING WHALES team for their close collaboration and trust throughout the project. I also want to recognize the excellent work of our teams across production, quality, application engineering and operations.”
Joensuu is Exel’s hub for advanced composite tube and pull-winding expertise, supported by our global factory network and R&D capabilities. The site brings together development, production, quality, application engineering and operations expertise to support demanding customer programs from validation to industrial scale production.
