Month: June 2019

At the Paris Air Show, held on June 17-23, fellow Dutch firm GKN Fokker signed a MoU with PAL-V to assist with the design, certification, engineering and production of current and future versions of PAL-V’s flying car, the Liberty.

PAL-V’s flying car, the Liberty

The MoU with GKN Fokker will both accelerate testing and production of the Liberty, as well as provide PAL-V with the backing of a larger, established aerospace company, which will be beneficial for competing with other companies in the UAM industry.

The Liberty is currently undergoing compliance demonstration, the final stage for certification, at the company’s headquarters in Raamsdonksveer, which is expected to finish sometime in late 2020 – early 2021. 

“GKN Fokker’s assistance strengthens our business with the capabilities and technologies of a world leader in the aviation industry,” said Robert Dingemanse, founder and CEO of PAL-V. “It’s fantastic that GKN Fokker will assist us in the finalisation of the PAL-V Liberty: the production and final certification.”

GKN plans on staying heavily involved with the Liberty even after initial production and manufacturing. One of the possible areas to explore is the possibility of producing specialized versions of the Liberty at a GKN Fokker site, aimed towards specific industries such as first response, police, and military. The added security and data provided by GKN Fokker’s production facilities are an important factor for such an undertaking. According to Robert Dingemanse, founder and CEO of PAL-V, “this is important as the interest from professional customers is growing rapidly.”

“Pal-V is an exciting company in the growing personal flying mobility market,” said Adriaan Leyte, vice president of new business development at GKN Fokker. “We are happy to support them in taking the next step. This innovative product can help the aviation industry in moving to the next chapter of personal flying mobility. As GKN Fokker, we want to assist them in their growth.”

Why it’s important: The MoU between GKN Fokker and PAL-V firmly establishes the latter as one of the stronger competitors in the UAM market. The Liberty, scheduled to be one of the first, if not the first, flying cars to be released for private purchase, will be the first taste of a true flying car experienced by the public. While included with a hefty price tag, the success of the Liberty could mean that future versions may end up no more expensive than a regular car. 

Sources // Flight Global

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Italian aerospace company Leonardo S.p.A. have been in the middle of developing their new helicopter/fixed-wing hybrid vehicle, the Next Generation Civil Tiltrotor, or NextGenCTR. The NextGenCTR was designed to meet the increasing demands of aerial mobility and maneuverability in densely populated urban areas. Recently, Leonardo has settled on using twin GE CT7 engines to power the NextGenCTR.

The GE Aviation CT7 turboshaft will be in the 2,000shp (1,490kW) class, and according to NGCTR programme manager Andrea Artioli, the main reason for choosing the CT7 was its “scaleability”. Leonardo  already uses the 2,000shp-rated -2E1 variant of the engine on its AW189 super-medium-twin helicopters.

The purpose of the demonstrator is two-fold: First, it is a direct response to the EU’s Clean Sky 2 Initiative. Developing a quieter and more environmentally-friendly aircraft is one of the main goals for the NextGenCTR.

Second, Leonardo anticipates debuting a number of tilt-rotor based aircraft, including the AW609. For this purpose, the NextGenCTR will debut a number of innovations in its design, such as a new semi-tilting nacelle, V-tail, composite wings and advanced cockpit and control system. It will also serve as further proof-of-concept of the tilt-rotor system, which incorporates a fixed engine installation with a split gearbox to provide prop-rotor swivel.

Leonardo’s NextGenCTR is anticipating its first test flight sometime in 2023.

Why it’s important: The demonstrative capabilities of the NextGenCTR will most likely decide if Leonardo proceeds with a tiltrotor-based aircraft family. Choosing the GE CT7s, with their scaleability, indicates that Leonardo does have strong intentions of doing so, and will most likely sell to a variety of markets, such as rescue and transportation, where quick and quiet aerial mobility will be vital. 

Sources // GE Aviation Blog

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Yesterday, Kitty Hawk Corporation and Boeing officially announced a strategic partnership to collaborate on Urban Air Mobility.

Kitty Hawk Corporation is well known for developing the Cora air taxi, which is fully electric, autonomous, and undergoing testing in New Zealand for commercial flights. Kitty Hawk began developing the Cora air taxi in 2010, completed the aircraft’s development in 2017, and signed with Air New Zealand for UAM development in October 2018.

According to the latest press release from Kitty Hawk, the partnership with Boeing will “bring together the innovation of Kitty Hawk’s Cora division with Boeing’s scale and aerospace expertise.” This could mean that Boeing has partnered with Kitty Hawk for the expansion of its Boeing NeXt UAM plans.

Am image from the Boeing NeXt introduction video.

Said Steve Nordlund, vice president and general manager of Boeing NeXt:
“Working with a company like Kitty Hawk brings us closer to our goal of safely advancing the future of mobility…We have a shared vision of how people, goods and ideas will be transported in the future.”

The press release names Boeing NeXt as “laying the foundation for a next-generation mobility ecosystem.”

Boeing also acquired eVTOL developer Aurora Flight Sciences in 2017. Since then, Aurora has been working on the Boeing Passenger Air Vehicle (PAV), which became one of the first prototype eVTOLS to successfully achieve autonomous hover flight in January of this year. Notably, both the Kitty Hawk Cora and the Boeing PAV feature multi-position fixed rotor designs (no tilting parts):

The Boeing PAV (left) and the Kitty Hawk Cora (right)

The recent partnership with Kitty Hawk represents just one of Boeing’s strategies for entering the Urban Air Mobility market. Aside from developing the PAV, Boeing also recently tested an autonomous cargo drone, and partnered with AI company SparkCognition to form SkyGrid, a blockchain powered airspace management system.

Why it’s important:  A partnership with Boeing spells immense news for a company like Kitty Hawk. Boeing, being one of the largest aerospace manufacturers in the world, has the capability to fully develop an entire UAM eco-system, as it is planning with the Boeing NeXt program. With the new partnership, Kitty Hawk Cora may become a part of that ecosystem.

The Airbus Vahana prototype has achieved flight with its wings fully transitioned to horizontal cruise mode.

Earlier this year, the Airbus Vahana test aircraft successfully completed a test flight in which the aircraft’s wings rotated partially into horizontal cruise stage, reaching speeds of about 57mph. In the latest test (Vahana’s 66th), the tilt-wing rotates into “full cruise configuration”, allowing the aircraft to reach speeds of over 100mph. Watch the full flight test video from Airbus here:

This latest test flight marks a significant step forward for Airbus, whose eventual goal is to make the Vahana part of a larger UAM system. The version of the Vahana seen here is planned as a demonstration vehicle for airbus to introduce to the public. Although it only has one seat, the Vahana Alpha Two is piloted autonomously, and features a completely finished interior, which will give riders the full sense of what autonomous flight will be like.

A close-up of the Airbus Alpha Vahana Two

According to Zach Lovering, Vice President of UAM Systems for Airbus, the latest full transition flights “represent everything we set out to achieve when we began our flight test campaign.” The Vahana demonstrator is still undergoing testing in Pendleton, Oregon.

The Airbus Vahana represents just one of Airbus’s many bids for UAM flight. Airbus has several prototypes being tested for various types of UAM, including the Airbus Pop.Up Next modular concept, which is capable of both road and air transport, as well as the Airbus CityAirbus, which is designed for intracity transport and completed its first test flight last month. Both vehicles are capable of autonomous flight.

The Airbus CityAirbus, which completed its first test flight last May.

Why it’s important: The successful test of the Airbus Vahana in cruise represents another step forward for Airbus UAM flight. The Vahana has successfully proven Airbus’s concept for tilt-wing transitions,  which is often considered the most difficult aspect of eVTOL design. With this latest achievement, Airbus even more deeply establishes its UAM presence in preparing for the larger industry launch.

XTI Aircraft has announced additional sales from from North America and Australia for the XTI TriFan 600, brining the order total up to 80 aircraft.

XTI Aircraft is a company making history by developing a luxury hybrid eVTOL for private flight. The company was founded in 2012, and to date has raised over $25 million from crowdfunding platform Startengine as well as from private investors.

Last week, XTI announced three additional aircraft pre-orders from buyers in North America and Australia, bringing the total order count up to 80. Specifically, two of those orders came from XTI’s new partner Heliflite, a VIP helicopter service in Australia, New Zealand, Oceania, Indonesia and the Philippines. The full pre-order list began at the 2017 Paris Air Show, and continued at the October 2017 and October 2018 NBAA conventions, as well as a notable recent order from Brazil’s Icon Aviation.

XTI has been steadily making progress, having flown its 65% scale prototype in May. The company expects to begin delivering aircraft imminently.

According to the newly formed partnership with Heliflite, XTI will work exclusively with Heliflite to develop XTI TriFan 600 services in Helifite’s operating areas. Said XTI CEO Robert LaBelle:
“This is a major development for XTI. We’re pleased to be working with Heliflite on an exclusive basis in this part of the world. They’ve been providing sales, service and spare parts support to the helicopter industry and other aircraft owners since 1977, and have earned an excellent reputation.”

“Heliflite is looking to the future, anticipating the next big thing in air travel, which has led us to proudly establish this relationship with XTI’s highly experienced design and management team. Heliflite looks very much forward to being instrumental in the TriFan 600’s success in our region,” – Heliflite Director Scott Edmonds.

Why its important: The new partnership with long-standing helicopter operator Heliflite marks a major step forward for XTI. Heliflite will enable the spread of XTI Aircraft throughout the Australia, New Zealand, and Oceana areas, creating an opportunity for the TriFan 600 to go into commercial use sooner rather than later in major global markets.

Israeli startup NFT Inc. is developing its own autonomous electric flying car. Named the Asaka (or ASKA), which means ‘flying bird’ in Japanese, the flying car is equipped with 14 propellers for flight, as well as conventional wheels for ground travel. NFT will showcase the ASKA at the Ecomotion 2019 smart mobility show in Tel Aviv, and intends to begin test flights by next year.

The ASKA was designed to address inner city road traffic congestion, and will be available for private purchase in the coming years. To take off, the ASKA will need a runway of about 20-30 meters in length, and will be able to fly up to 3 people a distance of 550 km (~342 miles) at a speed in between 160-240 km/hr (~ 99-150 mph). While electric, NFT Inc. states that the ASKA will still need a petrol engine to charge its batteries.

Chairman of NFT Inc. Guy Kaplinsky envisioned the ASKA for use in inner city and suburban commuting. The car, says Kaplinsky, would allow people to live away from city centers without having to spend hours on the road. Kaplinsky estimated the initial price of the flying car will be between $200k and $300k (USD), but noted that he expects the price to drop once commercial production begins.

NFT Inc. was founded 4 years ago by Kaplinsky and his wife and CEO Maki Kaplinsky. To learn more about the company, visit the site here.

Why it’s important: The ASKA, poses an interesting angle to approaching to urban air mobility. While most other designs incorporate electric-based aviation, there are not many eVTOLs that are designed for both ground and air transportation. Combined with the fact that the Asaka will be available for private transportation, rather than public, the possible success of the Asaka will determine whether there is any potential for UAM in the upper-class demographic.

Sources // World Israel News

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