Spector Cargo Bee Alpha (concept design)

(Image credit: Solomon Spector)

Cargo Bee Alpha (concept design)
Spector
Aberdeen, Maryland, USA
www.spectordrones.com

Solomon Spector is the owner of Spector Drones based in Aberdeen, Maryland, USA. Some interesting highlights of Spector's career include working in computers at the Missiles and Space Division at Lockheed Martin, contributing to navigation systems for the U.S. Navy's UH-1N Huey helicopter program and coordinating supercomputer research at the National Science Foundation. Spector was also the founder and lead inventor of Maiden Wave Energy, he captained a team that captured the $275,000 USD First Prize in a competition run by the Department of Energy and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to devise unique ways to capture marine energy to power hurricane-monitoring systems.

Spector is the team lead for his Cargo Bee Alpha autonomous emergency rescue hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone for the GoAero competition. He partnered with Airgility in College Park, Maryland, USA. His design was not a GoAERO winner. 

Cargo Bee Alpha emergency rescue passenger hybrid-electric VTOL drone (concept design)
The Cargo Bee Alpha is an autonomous emergency rescue one person hybrid-electric VTOL drone. Spector describes his drone as a flying gurney. The conventional engines which make the electricity for the aircraft are planned to be centered under the gurney. The team has a patent-pending technology which features eight bottom-boosted propellers for balance.

The drone has 10 propellers, 10 electric motors and is powered by a hybrid-electric power source. The drone features a closed compartment where a survivor from a natural disaster will be laying down for the entire air journey. The fuselage is made from carbon fiber composite to give the aircraft a high strength to low weight ratio. The drone has fixed quadricycle wheeled landing gear.

The team made a 1-15th scale model to a 1/2 scale working prototype able to carry 70 lb. When making models and prototypes, the team discovered real-world reasons to make changes to improve the aerodynamics and/or to improve the design of the aircraft. Spector recommends to plan to make at least three prototypes for a new drone and be willing to adapt and learn from each prototype.

About the GoAERO Prize Competition
The GoAERO Prize, sponsored by Boeing, is a three year competition (2024-2027) offering over $2 million USD in prizes that challenges engineers worldwide to create portable, versatile and autonomy-enabled Emergency Response Aircraft that address not only everyday medical emergencies but also to be used in natural disasters, humanitarian emergencies and climate crises worldwide. Each team designs and builds autonomous Emergency Response aircraft capable of delivering a first responder, medical equipment and supplies and ultimately evacuating victims in need to a rescue ambulance or hospital.

More than 150 teams from around the globe are competing for the GoAero prizes. The GoFly and GoAERO prizes were developed by Boeing, NASA and other organizations to help the nascent advanced air mobility (AAM) industry move forward.

Specifications:

• Aircraft type: Emergency rescue eVTOL multicopter (concept design)
• Piloting: Autonomous
• Capacity: 1 patient
• Cruise speed: Unknown
• Range: 1.6 km (9.9 m) (GoAERO mission requirement)
• Flight time: 30 minutes (GoAERO mission requirement)
• Cruise altitude: Service ceiling 15 m (49 ft)(GoAERO mission requirement)
• Maximum payload weight: Minimum 125 lb (57 kg) to a maximum 320 lb (145 kg) payload weight. (GoAERO mission requirement)
• Propellers: 10 propellers (or more)
• Electric motors: 10 electric motors (or more)
• Power source: Hybrid-electric power source using a gas engine and battery packs
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
• Cabin: Enclosed cabin
• Landing gear: Fixed quadricycle wheeled landing gear
• Safety features: Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) uses multiple propellers or electric ducted fans, each powered by electric motors, to increase safety through redundancy. If one or more components fail, the remaining ones can still ensure a safe landing. There are also redundancies of critical components in the sub-systems of the aircraft providing safety through redundancy. Having multiple redundant systems on any aircraft decreases having any single point of failure. The aircraft has no moving surfaces or tilting parts when transitioning from vertical to forward flight and the reverse which increases safety by reducing complexity.

Resources:

• Solomon Spector website
• Solomon Spector Facebook
• Solomon Spector LinkedIn
• Article: Meet the Teams: Team Cargo Bee Alpha, GoAERO, July 22, 2025