FlightWave Inks New, Larger Lease in Torrance

FlightWave Aerospace Systems is taking flight with its latest lease in the Los Angeles area.

The subsidiary of drone technology company Red Cat Holdings, signed a five-year lease for 51,023 square feet of space at a creative industrial and office property in Torrance, Commercial Observer reported. The deal is purportedly valued at almost $5.4 million. The facility at 2660 Columbia Street is owned by Chicago-based First Industrial Realty Trust.

With the new lease, FlightWave will more than triple its office footprint. The company currently operates out of a 14,616-square-foot space at Carson Industrial Center in Carson. FlightWave signed a three-year lease agreement at the DWS Group-owned property in late March, though it quickly outgrew the space. The company plans to sublease its Carson offices after setting up shop in Torrance.

Of the 51,023 square feet of industrial space at the new Torrance facility, 12,079 square feet are refurbished offices. The property has a clear height of 20 feet with four dock-high positions, an early suppression-fast response sprinkler system and 75 on-site parking spaces.

FlightWave’s new home is in a fitting location, as the aerospace industry has deep roots in the South Bay dating back to the World War II era. It still remains popular for aerospace companies today; the Bill Gates-backed Heart Aerospace, for example, signed a lease for 30,000 square feet at 1830 West 205th Street in Torrance last month. And in March, aerospace and aviation industry manufacturer Trio Manufacturing tripled its footprint to more than 123,000 square feet at a facility in Gardena.

In Torrance, besides Heart Aerospace, FlightWave will join Honeywell Aerospace at 2525 West 190th Street, Cadence Aerospace at 22906 Frampton Avenue, and In Orbit Aerospace at 20600 Gramercy Place. Several companies are also clustered around Zamperini Field, formerly known as the Torrance Municipal Airport, including Howmet Aerospace, Lisi Aerospace and Microcosm.

— Chris Malone Méndez