Vertical Aerospace has appointed Kathy Cassidy and Gur Kimchi as independent, non-executive directors to its board, and Dómhnal Slattery as advisor to CEO and chairman Stephen Fitzpatrick. These appointments will be effective upon completion of Vertical's business combination with Broadstone Acquisition Corp.

“I am thrilled to welcome Kathy and Gur to the Vertical board and to be working alongside Dómhnal in his new role as an advisor,” says Fitzpatrick. “Their collective experience across aviation, technology and the public markets will propel us forward on the next stage of our journey. I'm delighted to be working with them to make zero emissions aviation a reality for all.”

Cassidy brings over 20 years of capital markets experience having spent 13 years as senior vice president and treasurer of GE and GE Capital, and the last six years as an independent board director for Goldman Sachs Mutual Funds. She will chair Vertical's audit committee.

Kimchi is a veteran aviation and technology executive who co-founded Amazon Prime Air, Amazon's drone delivery service. He has held a series of leadership roles at Amazon and Microsoft and was a member of the FAA drone advisory committee from 2016 to 2020. Kimchi holds a significant number of issued patents and will serve as chair of Vertical's certification committee.

Avolon co-founder and CEO Dómhnal Slattery has over 30 years' experience in the aircraft leasing industry and has taken Avolon through a period of private equity ownership, listing on the NYSE and its eventual acquisition by Bohai Leasing. Avolon has invested in Vertical’s PIPE and has made a 500 aircraft conditional pre-order for its VA-X4 through its affiliate Avolon-e, 350 of which have already been placed to Brazil's Gol airline and Japan's JAL.

Slattery says: “Avolon's confidence in Vertical is evident in our equity investment in its PIPE and our commitment to the VA-X4 programme with our June order for 500 zero emissions aircraft. Vertical has the largest order book in the sector, it has the vision, the right business model and the right leadership team. I look forward to playing a strong role in its future success.”

Over the past five years, Vertical has focused on building an experienced and senior team who between them have over 1,700 combined years of engineering experience, and who have certified and supported over 30 different civil and military aircraft and propulsion systems. The executive team comprises of Fitzpatrick, CFO Vinny Casey and president Michael Cervenka.