AeroVironment commits $100M to new Moorpark campus
AeroVironment has doubled down on its Ventura County presence after the drone maker announced that it is investing $100 million into a unified company-owned campus across approximately 20 acres in Moorpark to bring together capabilities from five leased Southern California locations to strengthen collaboration across research, engineering, design, prototyping, and production.
Founded in 1971 in Monrovia, AeroVironment has held a Southern California presence throughout its entire existence. In 2018, the company shifted its headquarters to Simi Valley in Ventura County before ultimately designating Arlington, Virginia as its headquarters in 2021.
That move came because the company wanted its headquarters to be “where many of our key customers are located,” CEO Wahid Nawabi said in 2021. AeroVironment designs and manufactures autonomous systems, counter-UAS systems, and space systems for the U.S. military.
The company has always maintained research and development, engineering, design and production in California, including Ventura County, where the company has held plants in Simi and Moorpark. The new Moorpark campus is “designed to provide flexibility to accommodate future technologies and evolving mission requirements.”
“This infrastructure investment reaffirms AV’s enduring commitment to California, where the company was founded more than five decades ago,” Nawabi said in a press release. “We are reinvesting in labs, lines and people. The campus will be designed around how our teams work, with modern, flexible spaces that support focused work, technical collaboration and future growth.”
AeroVironment expects to close on the primary property during its fiscal second quarter, with renovation and construction set to begin in fiscal year 2028. The plant is expected to be operational by fiscal year 2029.
“This is about how fast we can move from an idea to getting a system in the hands of the warfighter, and how much more capability we can deliver,” said AeroVironment’s COO Rob Smith. “Creating a unified campus will reduce the friction of operating across multiple locations and provide a connected environment designed for speed, collaboration and growth.”
