Month: September 2020

Turkish aerospace company Baykar Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Systems Co’s Cezeri successfully conducted hover tests in its first maiden test flight. Weighing in at 230 kg (507 lb.), the prototype flying car ascended to about 10 meters in the air during trials. According to Baykar Chief Technology Officer Selcuk Bayraktar, “We will make more advanced prototypes in the upcoming process, and perform flights with a human [on board].”

Bayarktar also noted that an expected timeframe could see the launching of the commercial variant after all development and trials to be after 10-15 years. “After smart cars, the revolution in automotive technology will be in flying cars. So from this point of view, we are preparing for tomorrow’s races, rather than today’s,” he said.

Unveiled at Teknofest in 2019, the Cezeri is one seater quadcopter that is expected to be able to reach a flight ceiling of 2000 meters and a maximum speed of 100 kph. The craft’s name is inspired by Ismail al-Jazari, a renowned Muslim engineer who lived between 1136 and 1206. The company already produces drones for both armed and non-armed forces as well as control systems, simulators, and avionics systems. Selcuk Bayraktar has confirmed that plans are in place to conduct test flights with a human pilot.

Turkish aerospace company Baykar Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Systems Co’s Cezeri successfully conducted hover tests in its first maiden test flight.

Why it’s important: Countries and companies worldwide are continuing to make inquiries and decisions to enter the aerial mobility market. Turkey, Japan, and many other countries are now all looking into supporting their own native aerial mobility vehicles with political and financial backing. With this latest technological milestone, Turkey and companies within it hope to continue to expand domestic aerial mobility technology in the coming years.
Source // The EurAsian Times

AutoFlightX, the developer of eVTOL aircraft and large-scale drones since 2018, is continuing to create ever bigger autonomous aircraft with the release of its V400 eVTOL aircraft this week. The company prides itself on being one of the aerial mobility industry’s top developers of high-capacity, fixed-wing eVTOL cargo drones, with plans to create and deploy a passenger-ready model by 2025.

On September 13th, 2020, AutoFlightX unveiled the V400 “Albatross” at the World UAV Federation’s 2020 Drone World Congress in Shenzhen, China. This aircraft is the company’s biggest commercially produced aircraft yet, with a wingspan of 30 feet and a payload capacity of up to 220 lbs. The Albatross will come in both a completely electric version with a range of 185 miles, and and a hybrid-electric version with a range up to 620 mi. Previous models included the V50 White Shark drone, which could only carry loads up to 45 lbs, but broke multiple flight duration records.

The V400 “Albatross” unveiling at the World UAV Federation’s 2020 Drone World Congress in Shenzen, China

AutoFlightX is now accepting orders for the V400, which can be used for express delivery, disaster relief, first response, and other applications. Construction of the V400 prototype is now completed, and the maiden flight is expected by the end of this year. AutoFlightX is headquartered in Shanghai, with research and development facilities in Munich, Germany, and Shenzhen, China.

Why it’s important: AutoFlightX has said that while it is currently building cargo drones, it intends to use the commercialization of its eVTOL aircraft to build the vision for its UAM air taxis of the future. In 2018, it shared a prototype for its V600 passenger vehicle, which it hopes to begin producing in 2025. Said an AutoFlightX spokesperson, “AutoFlightX believes that the research, design, certification, and mass production of eVTOL with large payload capacity are fundamental to the commercialization of the UAM vision.” Additionally, AutoFlightX believes that the V400 will meet the current requirements of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, and thus has a clear path to commercialization in that country.

Pipistrel’s electric airplane, the Velis Electro, will soon take flight as it prepares for its 700 km trip from Zurich to the North Sea island, Norderney, after obtaining type certification from the EASA. The Velis will fly a total of 700 km (435 miles) across Germany, and will look to break or match seven world records along the way. 

The Velis Electro is an all-electric 2-seater trainer aircraft, and is the upgrade over Pipistrel’s previous Alpha Electro aircraft. The plane possesses a top speed of 181 km/h (112 mph) and a service ceiling of 3,660 m (12,000 ft). As for its power capabilities, the Velis Electro runs on a 60 kW liquid-cooled electric motor running on a 345 VDC electrical system as well as two redundant parallel batteries providing a total of 24.8 kWh of energy, which serve to give the Velis a max range at around 100 km (62 miles), meaning that the airplane will need to recharge a minimum of six times during the trip. A normal recharge of the batteries (from 35% to 95%) takes around 1 hour and 20 minutes. A full recharge (30-100%) takes up to 2 hours.

Pipistrel’s team hopes to break the following records during the flight from Zurich to Norderney:

• Lowest energy consumption (kWh/100 km) over 700 km
• Highest average speed over 700 km (km/h)
• Highest altitude ever reached by an electric aircraft (metre above main sea level)
• Fastest climb performance from 0-1000m / 1000-2000m / 2000-3000m (m/s)
• Highest average speed over 100km (km/h)
• Lowest number of intermediate stops on 700km distance (number of stops)
• Longest electrically flown distance in 24 / 48 / 56 hours (km)

According to team member Marco Bulhozer, “Flying with kerosene is extremely harmful to the climate. Aviation currently accounts for around five percent of the global warming, and the trend is increasing. The emissions at high altitude are a particular problem that arise from air traffic. We want to show that there are alternatives, even if we don’t manage the whole route in one go, CO₂-neutral flying is already possible today! Most small planes fly distances shorter than 200 kilometers anyway, and you could do that electrically.”

Why it’s important: Electric flight is constantly improving, as both demand and innovation continue to head towards environmentally friendly methods of energy. Especially for aerial mobility, where providing transportation that is quick and environmentally friendly is one of its biggest draws,the Velis Electro’s flight can publicly demonstrate that there are alternatives methods of travel such as CO₂-neutral flying and how far electric technology has developed so far.

Source // Clean Technica

Lilium, the Munich-based aviation company developing an all-electric, vertical take-off and landing aircraft for regional air mobility, has agreed with both Dusseldorf Airport and Cologne/Bonn Airport to explore how the two airports can become hubs within a regional air mobility network spanning North Rhine-Westphalia. Lilium plans to establish regional air mobility as a new mode of transportation, using its fully electric, 5-seater aircraft by 2025.

Rendering of a possible vertiport at Cologne Bonn Airport (Copyright: CGN/Lilium)

The announcement was made this week in Dusseldorf in the presence of the Transportation Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia Hendrik Wüst. As the largest and most densely populated German state (18 million inhabitants), including ten cities with over 300,000 inhabitants, as well as more than 40 universities and colleges and four international trade fair locations, North Rhine-Westphalia is an ideal location for Lilium landing sites. The Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan area is the largest in Germany and the third largest in Europe. It now aims to become home to mobility in the third dimension.

North Rhine-Westphalia Transport Minister Hendrik Wüst explained: “What sounds like science fiction today may soon be reality. In the federal state with the highest mobility needs, smart ideas for better mobility are always welcome. We need all modes of transport in order to provide people with a convincingly diverse range of mobility options.“

He added: “North Rhine-Westphalia is a model region for the mobility of the future. We want digitally-networked mobility in North Rhine-Westphalia not only to be researched and developed, but also experienced as soon as possible. This is why we support and promote many future-oriented projects and research projects here in North-Rhine-Westphalia.”

As international traffic hubs with excellent connections to air, rail and road traffic, the two airports Cologne/Bonn and Dusseldorf are an ideal starting point for the development of networked mobility, which also includes air taxis.

“We are excited to bring our innovative service to North Rhine-Westphalia,” says Lilium COO Dr. Remo Gerber. “Cities such as Aachen, Bielefeld, Münster and Siegen will be directly connected to the region’s largest international airports within 30mins, providing emission-free, high-speed connectivity at an affordable price.”

Remo Gerber added: “North Rhine-Westphalia and its airports are ideal partners for us to implement this ambitious project of the future – we are grateful to receive this support from both the Ministry and our partners at the airports to implement our vision”.

Why it matters: Lilium’s partnership with Germany’s Transport Ministry will be crucial in making aerial mobility a reality in the region. The partnership will ensure the company has public sector support in recruiting talent, meeting with regulators, and garnering public support. Expect to see more partnerships like this one across the globe as manufacturers ready their prototypes for flight.

Source: Lilium

Airspeeder, an Australian startup that makes a single-seater racing quadcopter, has officially partnered with leading cyber protection firm Acronis for both technical and commercial support in upcoming air races.

Airspeeder, founded by entrepreneur Matt Pearson, has the vision of creating the world’s first electric flying car racing series using its MK4 racers. The company has been working towards this goal for multiple years, and hopes to host the first Airspeeder Grand Prix in 2021. Notably, the company has already received backing from several major investors, including DHL and investment firm Equals.

Rendering of an Airspeeder MK4 in flight

Acronis, a global leader in data solutions and cyber security, will ensure the data security for the LiDAR and Machine Vision technology that will deliver safe close-distance racing. Essentially, ‘virtual force-fields’ will be created around each aircraft to ensure safety against collisions, and Acronis will ensure that these systems remain secure. Acronis will also help to help manage the massive amount of data involved in the air races that will help improve performance and safety in many areas. The partnership with Acronis is especially strategic since Acronis already has experience in data management and security for Formula One auto racing.

“Acronis’ place at the leading edge of innovation in data management perfectly aligns with Alauda and Airspeeder’s vision to accelerate a mobility revolution through close sporting competition. Our proven, integrated approach to providing easy, efficient, reliable and secure cyber protection for all data, applications and systems, will help Airspeeder to enhance their performance on the air track and in the back office. We look forward to delivering on the promise of a true next generation technical and sporting proposition.”  – Jan-Jaap Jager, the Board Advisor and Senior Vice President at Acronis.

Why it’s important: According to Airspeeder, its big-picture mission is to help accelerate the progress of eVTOL technology as a whole through racing competitions. It hopes that introducing this technology to the world in a racing context will accelerate both public acceptance and technological advancement, ‘hasting the arrival of eVTOL aircraft as a means of zero-emission aerial transportation’. This latest partnership with Acronis is especially significant as it adds an extra layer of validity to the upcoming future of air racing.

Related:

• Alauda Plans to Race Two Airspeeder Flying Cars in South Australia
• Alauda Airspeeder Flies at Goodwood Festival of Speed
• Drone Champions AG Flies Aerobatics with a Manned Racing Drone

teTra Aviation, winner of the $100,000 Pratt & Whitney Disruptor Award at Boeing’s GoFly personal flight contest in February, has recently partnered with Yoshimasu Seisakusho in a capital and business partnership that will have Yoshimasu investing 50 million yen (~$470,000) in the University of Tokyo aviation startup. 

The teTra 3

After winning the Disruptor Award for their single passenger hybrid eVTOL aircraft design, teTra now secures an additional investor in Yoshimasu, a Tokyo-based aircraft engine part manufacturer. Yoshimasu will also aid the startup in developing titanium and aluminum components that need to withstand high temperatures. Details are limited on teTra’s aircraft, known as the teTra 3, but the company plans to commercialize the product in the U.S. by 2021. 

teTra, led by a doctoral student at the University of Tokyo Tasuku Nakai, is notably the first Japanese company to receive a test flight permit for an eVTOL vehicle from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. 

The GoFly Prize is sponsored by Boeing, Pratt & Whitney, as well as more than 20 national and international aviation and innovation organizations. All teams participating in the competition have also benefited from the guidance and expertise of a dedicated Mentors and Masters program.

Why it’s important: teTra Aviation takes their next step after taking the Disruptor Award from the GoFly competition. Securing Yoshimashu’s partnership presents a good milestone for teTra, and indicates a strong future for the Japanese startup in the aerial mobility industry. 

Source // Nikkei Asian Review

Pipstrel has begun accepting orders for its Nuuva series of cargo eVTOL aircraft this week. The flagship model dubbed the Nuuva V300 is a long range/large capacity autonomous eVTOL vehicle optimized for aerial cargo delivery. The cargo vehicle will be able to carry up to 460kg of payload while offering operators with low costs and high efficiency.

The large cargo compartment accepts up to 3 Euro-pallets (EPAL) that can be easily loaded with a regular forklift. The Nuuva V300 then flies a preloaded flight plan fully autonomously, controlled by a highly reliable digital flight control system. Continuous communication allows the ground operator, who manages the vehicle with simple mouse-clicks, to have ultimate control in case of changes or cancellation of the flight.

Nuuva V300 takes-off and lands using eight independent battery-powered Pipistrel E-811 electric engines (already Type Certified). The whole system is safeguarded by the integrated health self‑monitoring system that alerts of any potential malfunction even before it occurs, increasing the reliability and safety.

Nuuva V300 can be customized for a wide range of missions. For operators that prioritize longer range, the vehicle’s payload capacity and anti-ice capabilities can be traded for more usable fuel, being able to transport 50-kg payload for as far as 2,500 km – all this without compromising the ability to take-off and land vertically from altitudes as high as 8,000 ft. At lower take-off altitudes and with shorter mission requirements, the payload can be increased to up to 460 kg.

The smaller sibling of the Nuuva family, the V20, shares the same architecture and advantages of the larger V300 but is designed as a lightweight cargo courier carrying payloads of up to 20 kg. First customers will be able to take deliveries as early as 2021. Expect to see this variant used in final mile delivery services, while the V300 offers intra/intercity transport of cargo goods.

The company is currently targeting an entry into service in late 2023 for the Nuuva V300.

Why it matters: Autonomous eVTOL operation is a excellent opportunity to fully leverage the benefits of aerial mobility with its combination of leveraged technology and pilot-less operation. Pipstrel’s Nuuva series cargo eVTOL prototype will be able to carry large quantities of cargo a long distance to customers while reducing costs all around the value chain.

(JORDAN STEAD / Amazon)

In Summer of last year, Amazon received approval from the FAA to begin testing its drones in major cities like San Diego. Today, Amazon now has received official Part 135 approval to begin operating commercial deliveries on a trial basis.

According to the FAA itself, this ruling will allow Amazon to “safely and efficiently deliver packages to customers”. Most notably, this decision will allow Amazon to operate its drones (autonomously) outside of the visual line of sight, a permission not given to other kinds of drone operators.

Amazon has been developing its ‘Prime Air’ delivery service since as early as 2013, when it first posited the idea of autonomous delivery by drone in order to promote the possibility of same-day delivery for even more of its offered products. Quick delivery is a core competitive advantage of Amazon’s value proposition to customers as a company, so the implementation of ideas like Prime Air are what will allow it to stay on top of the market in years to come. Since 2013, Amazon has focused on overcoming both technological and regulatory hurdles, and today it took one step closer to its eventual goals.

The company’s drone concept aircraft has also come a long way since its inception. The original design followed a multi-copter model similar to many recreational drones of the time. The new version of the drone, unveiled last year, features a hexagonal body which also serves as a fixed-wing, allowing for more efficient horizontal flight. According to Amazon, the new drone should have a 15 mile range, carry packages up to 5 pounds, and make 15 mile journeys in under 30 minutes.
Watch flight footage of Amazon’s delivery drone below:

Notably, Amazon is not the first aspiring drone delivery company to receive commercial certification. In April of last year, Google X Project spin-off Wing also received commercial certification to operate in deliveries in Virginia, and UPS has also been trialing Matternet’s drones to transport medical supplies in North Carolina.

Why it’s important: Although Amazon is not the first aspiring drone delivery company to receive commercial certification, it is by far the largest, making this latest announcement very significant. Operating commercial deliveries by drone on such a large scale could do much to open up the skies for all kinds of aerial mobility by pushing forward flight hardware, airspace management technologies, government regulation, and even public acceptance.