About Us

Our Mission

Stratoship is making persistent monitoring and communications accessible to everyone.

Stratoship was founded by Daniel Field in 2020. In the same year, Stratoship was selected to be part of the RMIT University Firefly Pathfinder Project.

Daniel designed and manufactured our first self-designed, self-built high-altitude balloon, known as “The Pebble”. The Pebble was flown in 2021 and successfully made it to the stratosphere.

Our Story

RMIT logo with a red circular graphic and the word "RMIT University" in black text.
The Pebble, a large metallic inflatable baloon in gymnasium
High altitude balloon with camera view showing curved Earth and atmosphere.

The Pebble during an inflation test

The Pebble in the stratosphere

Our success in the Firefly Pathfinder Project paved the way for Stratoship to build a propulsive airship prototype, the SZ-155, as part of the HAPS Challenge. In 2022, we launched our first fully functional stratospheric airship prototype.

HAPS Challenge logo featuring a high-altitude balloon above Earth, surrounded by a blue circular border with text "HAPS Challenge" and affiliated organizations.
The Stratoship SZ-155, a large silver inflatable airship inside a gymnasium with two people standing nearby.
A group of people wearing safety vests gather around the SZ-155 airship covered with a green and white striped fabric at night. Orange traffic cones are placed on the ground, and the scene is illuminated by artificial lights.

The SZ-155 during an inflation test

In 2025, the SZ-155 successfully flew in the stratosphere above central Queensland. The prototype airship made it to 65,000 ft and flew for 11 hours and 12 minutes in total. It spent over 8 hours in the stratosphere during the flight, and marked Australia’s first sovereign designed and built HAPS (high-altitude platform station) to make it to the stratosphere.

The flight also carried a number of payloads, including an ignition detection sensor to test the Stratoship’s capability in identifying wildfires and bushfires from the stratosphere.

The SZ-155 before launch

The SZ-155 partially inflated and grounded near a truck at sunset in an open field.

The SZ-155 before launch

The SZ-155 in the stratosphere

A man wearing glasses and a black polo shirt with a logo, smiling, standing indoors.

Daniel Field

Managing Director

Dan holds over 20 years of experience in aerospace and communications engineering, working across technical, management and business roles.

Person with long brown hair wearing a black shirt and an orange watch, smiling with folded arms.

Jennifer Williams

Chief Operating Officer

Jennifer has worked across Defence, aviation, business, marketing and operations. Jennifer also holds a commercial pilot licence and is a remote pilot.

Pilot wearing sunglasses flying a small airplane over a coastal area with visible instrumentation panel.

Josh Quilty

Chief Remote Pilot

Josh has over 9 years of experience working as a commercial pilot, remote pilot and small business operator.