AeroVironment Completes Acquisition of Drone-Maker

AeroVironment Inc. completed its acquisition of Arcturus UAV Inc. making it a wholly owned subsidiary under the AeroVironment brand.The $405 million transaction between the Simi Valley drone manufacturer and Arcturus in Petaluma was originally announced on Jan. 13.“As we welcome the Arcturus UAV team to AeroVironment, we commit to maintaining or exceeding the high level of service our existing and new customers experience,” Chief Executive Wahid Nawabi said in a statement.Founded in 2004 and based in Petaluma, Arcturus UAV designs and manufactures Group 2 and Group 3 drones. Those groups are for unmanned aircraft weighing between 21 pounds but no more than 1,320 pounds. AeroVironment already provides aircraft in the light-weight Group 1 segment.Arcturus UAV’s products include the JUMP-20, a multi-mission, medium endurance vertical takeoff and landing system requiring no launch equipment or runway. The company also makes the T-20, a multi-mission, medium endurance catapult-launched system, according to a release from AeroVironment. Arcturus has about 270 employees.Shares of AeroVironment closed Monday down $1.62, or 1.3 percent, to $125.67 on the Nasdaq, on a day when that market closed down almost 2.5 percent.