XTI Aircraft Company has named Steve Zohrabian as executive vice president, where he will lead development of XTI Aircraft's family of VTOL aircraft beginning with the mid-range TriFan 600. This appointment marks a significant milestone in the maturation of XTI Aircraft as the company accelerates toward first flight, certification and commercialisation of its revolutionary aircraft.

In his new role, Zohrabian will provide strategic leadership across engineering and flight programmes while building trusted relationships with regulators, government partners and industry stakeholders. Drawing on decades of experience successfully bringing both rotorcraft and fixed-wing platforms into production, he will guide the TriFan 600's path to type certification and position it as a disruptive entrant in the next era of advanced air mobility.

“Bringing in a leader of Mr. Zohrabian's calibre represents a critical step forward for XTI Aircraft,” remarks Scott Pomeroy, chief executive officer of XTI Aerospace. “His unique experience across tiltrotor, rotorcraft and fixed-wing programmes, combined with a proven track record in scaling operations and certification, makes him the ideal executive to guide us toward commercialisation of the TriFan 600.”

Zohrabian joins XTI from Piasecki Aircraft Corporation, where he served as chief operating officer and helped transform the company into a premier developer of next-generation VTOL aircraft. He led the acquisition of Lockheed Martin Sikorsky's Heliplex facility in Coatesville, Pennsylvania, preserving critical infrastructure and retaining top engineering talent, while advancing multiple experimental VTOL platforms through development and flight test.

Prior to Piasecki, he was president and COO of Applied Concepts Group, following more than 17 years at The Boeing Company. At Boeing, he held senior leadership roles in programme management, engineering and strategy, supporting programmes such as the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor, CH-47 Chinook and advanced networks and space ISR systems. He also spearheaded major enterprise-wide engineering process transformations and lean initiatives that enabled greater collaboration across Boeing's sites, supply chain and customer base.

“This is a breakthrough moment in aviation,” says Zohrabian. “The TriFan line of aircraft is uniquely positioned to transform business, disaster recovery and military flight by delivering the range and speed of an aircraft with the flexibility of vertical flight. I am honoured to join XTI Aircraft at this pivotal stage with the goal of helping to bring this transformative platform to market.”

With this appointment, XTI Aircraft strengthens its leadership bench and advances its transition from design and modelling to full-scale development and certification, cementing its role as a pioneer in the emerging vertical economy.