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Chinese aerial mobility developer EHang has signed an agreement with the government of Seville, Spain, to initiate an Urban Air Mobility program that will build systems for passenger transport and autonomous airspace management in the city. This marks one of Europe’s first cities to begin planning for an aerial mobility future.

EHang has built itself into one of the world’s top AAV (Autonomous Aerial Vehicle) platform developers in the world. Along with the creation of an eVTOL aircraft resembling a large drone, EHang also has been developing intelligent systems for airspace management of its vehicles and smaller UAV’s (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). The mission of the company is to create a completely autonomous aerial network. EHang opened on the U.S Nasdaq early this year at a $662 million valuation.

The EHang 216 in flight.

The agreement with the city of Seville specifies that EHang will work with the Seville government to develop aerial passenger transportation and command and control platforms within the city. The government will also collaborate with EHang on applications for permission to conduct test flights, in accordance with Spanish and European legislation, and will coordinate with EHang in the planning of flight routes.

In addition, EHang will perform an aerial light show in Seville on September 20th to celebrate the 500^th anniversary of Ferdinand Magellan’s voyage around the world, which began in Seville.

Ehang 216s flying autonomously during a demo flight in Guangzhou, China.

Seville Mayor Juan Espadas Cejas commented, “Establishing the partnership with EHang, one of the world’s leading UAM enterprises, is a great opportunity for Seville. Our city has a rich legacy in European aviation, which we believe can promote EHang’s AAV tests, operations, and permitting applications both in Spain and Europe. We look forward to EHang’s first flight in Seville and hope our cooperation will facilitate the commercialization of its UAM ecosystem in Europe.”

Why it’s important: As mentioned by EHang CEO Mr. Hu Huazhi, AAVs have excellent potential in older cities like Seville that have many small, narrow streets that are inaccessible by automobile. Wider streets are often very congested, and historic areas are often damaged by pollution from carbon emissions. According to the European Commission’s urban mobility report, congestion in the EU costs nearly EUR 100 billion every year, accounting for 1% of the EU’s annual GDP. If cities like Seville successfully adopt electric aerial mobility, the positive impact on Europe as a whole could be massive.

Related:

• EHang Obtains Operational Permit from Civil Aviation Authority of Norway
• EHang Successfully Completes First US Trial Flight
• EHang’s IPO Results in $662 Million Valuation

Netherlands-based flying car manufacturer, PAL-V has announced plans to set up a manufacturing plant in Gujarat, India, building off of its announcement to test the prototype in the area last week at the Economic Times Summit in Delhi.

The Pal-V Liberty, a road-capable personal gryocopter available starting at $399k USD

The company is in its final stages of certification in Europe as of February 2020.

The announcement also comes with new Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with the Principal Secretary of State, MK Das. This MoU will greatly help the flying car manufacturer in receiving all the necessary regulatory approvals to set up a new production plant in Gujarat. 

PAL-V chose Gujarat for its world-class infrastructure, relative ease of conducting business, and low cost basis for producing its flying car prototype at scale. The PAL-V Liberty has been under development for the past decade, will have the ability to transform from a car to a flight vehicle in less than 3 minutes, and can fly distances of over 500km.

The Liberty will be able to seat two people with 20kg of baggage. 

Why it matters: This announcement follows recent news from PAL-V last week at the Economic Times Summit in New Delhi and signals a significant investment in India for the final production and testing of its vehicles. In addition, another agreement with Kuwait Airways for suggests that that PAL-V may expect its first customers to be residents of the East. If the company meets its 2021 goal of delivering final vehicles to customers, it would be among one of the first to do so and usher in the era of aerial mobility.

With the newest smart electric motors from Safran, the electric Voltaero Cassio has taken flight. 

The Voltaero Cassio, developed by former Airbus CTO Jean Botti, is a hybrid-electric, high-range airplane, built to bring cleaner energy to regional commercial flights, private aircraft ownership, and more. The hybrid system utilized by Voltaero gives the Cassio the utmost safety, the lowest noise emissions, and highest fuel efficiency among any existing aircraft of its class. The new company formed by Botti aspires to eventually create 150 five-to-nine passenger aircraft each year.

The Voltaero Cassio prototype in flight.

Voltaero entered the latest testing phase of the Cassio last July, when it first partnered with Safran to begin development of the prototype. The company has been working on the Cassio since its founding in 2018, and deliveries of production aircraft are expected to begin as early as 2021.

The latest set of testing marks an important milestone for Voltaero, as it proves the viability of the hybrid-electric powertrain. Said Voltaero founder and CEO Jean Botti: “I am very pleased with the testing as we accumulate time aloft and open up the aircraft’s flight envelope. The current test phase is with the powertrain for our six-seat Cassio version, to be followed by validation of the final aerodynamic and powertrain configurations on both the four- and nine-seat Cassio versions.”

The current flight evaluations utlize two Safran ENGINeUSTM 45 electric motors installed in forward-facing positions on the wings.

Said Technical Director Didier Esteyne, who piloted the test aircraft, “Flying on the power of Safran’s ENGINeUS^TM motors is truly remarkable, with no vibration and extremely low noise levels. It confirms that our Cassio aircraft will bring an entirely new experience to aviation.”

Vision for the final version of the Cassio.

Why it’s Important: With this latest breakthrough for Voltaero, an enormous step has been taken forward for the era of sustained electric flight. While eVTOLs do not generally use hybrid systems as does the Voltaero Cassio, development of hybrid-electric airplanes that can travel for extended periods of time contribute greatly to the potential for all electric aircraft. Notably, Safran is also developing electric motors specifically built for eVTOL applications, extending its expertise in electric propulsion for aviation.

Related:

• Former Airbus CTO Jean Botti is Developing A New Electric Airplane
• Safran Unveils Electric Motor Built for VTOL Aircraft
• Harbour Air Completes First All-Electric Powered Flight

The PAL-V Liberty, a road-capable air and land vehicle available starting at $399k USD.

PAL-V is a Dutch company that’s been developing a personal drivable aircraft for over ten years since its founding in 2008. Since then, PAL-V has been working hard to advance its technology and move forward toward both land and air certification. The PAL-V Liberty can take off within 330m, fly at speeds over 180kph, and can land vertically. The company expects to deliver its first aircraft to the hands of customers by December 2021.

Accroding to PAL-V Co-Chairman Drs Janpieter Koning, company representatives recently met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demonstrate its technology. “We might start testing in India very soon” said Koning at the Economic Times Global Business Summit in New Delhi. The Economic Times Summit this year covered many topics, including the the disruption caused by the coronavirus outbreak, the impact of artificial intelligence on businesses and employment generation, and corporate preparedness to face disruptive changes.

A panel takes place at the Economic Times Global Business Summit in New Delhi, India

PAL-V hopes begin production in 2021, and according to many sources, is reaching the final stages of the certification process in Europe. The company also recently signed a Memorium of Understanding with Kuwait Airways, which will help provide aviation maintenance service for PAL-V’s customers.

The PAL-V Liberty unfolds its main propellor from its roof

Why it’s important: PAL-V’s Liberty is significant as it’s one of the only personal road-capable aircraft that will soon be available for sale. While other companies such as Terrafugia have pivoted directions, and others are selling private aircraft with a more VTOL-style for a higher price-point, PAL-V has stayed the course in making a personal aircraft that can also serve the daily commute. This may make it one of the first in the industry to begin unit sales to private customers.

Sources // The Economic Times

The Urban Air Mobility Grand Challenge, initiated by the FAA and NASA, is designed to provide a ‘proving ground’ for new types of urban aircraft, allowing both government regulators and the new aircraft developers to begin setting the standards for commercial certification. This week, NASA announced seventeen of the companies it will be working with in the Grand Challenge.

An artist’s rendering of NASA’s vision for the future of urban air mobility.

The main event of the Grand Challenge will take place in 2022, and will be a “full field demonstration in an urban environment that tests the readiness of companies’ vehicles and airspace operators’ systems to operate during a full range of passenger transport and cargo delivery scenarios.” According to NASA, the timeline set for the Grand Challenge series was dictated by predictions from participants on their aircrafts’ readiness. Traffic management systems, weather resilience, safety, and other systems for communications and navigation will all be tested and evaluated.

The developmental testing phase of the UAM Grand Challenge in 2020 will assess the readiness of NASA’s test infrastructure while integrating a mobile operating facility and NASA airspace services. Joby Aviation is slated to complete flight tests during this developmental phase.

In the 2022 main event, Joby Aviation and five other companies will complete flight tests. These are: Zeva Aerospace, Bell, Boeing, NFT, and Prodentity.

Featured: Joby Aviation (top left), Zeva Zero (top right), The Bell Nexus (bottom left), and the Boeing PAV (bottom right).

The other eleven industry partners with NASA focus on providing solutions and data for UAM air traffic management services, which will be a key part of the aerial mobility ecosystem. During the Grand Challenge, these companies will test their airspace management services in a series of NASA-designed airspace simulations. The list of companies includes:

• AirMap
• AiRXOS,
• ANRA Technologies
• ARINC
• Avision
• Ellis & Associates
• GeoRq
• Metron Aviation
• OneSky Systems
• Uber Technologies
• The University of North Texas

Why it’s Important: NASA’s Grand Challenge is not only designed to test new aircraft, but to help NASA and the FAA set certification requirements for vehicles going into commercial operation within the next ten years. Companies that participate in the Grand Challenge are likely to have a head start on launching operation of their aircraft in commercial services.

Related:

NASA Completes First Steps in Urban Air Mobility Grand Challenge
(November 2018)

Toyota-Backed Joby Aviation Raised $590 Million in Series C Funding
(January 2020)

New Zeva Zero Prototype Images Revealed
(October 2019)

Sources //  eVTOL.com

EHang recently announced that the company obtained operational permit for its two-seater passenger-grade AAV, the EHang 216, from the Civil Aviation Authority of Norway (CAA Norway). This is the first operational permit for long term testing flight of EHang 216 in Europe, laying a solid foundation for future urban air mobility (UAM) operations in other EU countries.

After the assessment of test flight plans and contingency plans, the CAA Norway issued an operational permit for EHang 216 to conduct flights together with a local customer for the purpose of testing and certification. According to CAA Norway, it believes the country ’s geographic conditions suit the testing of unmanned aircraft well. Covered with a long strip of land with abundance of sparsely populated areas and free airspace, the country has started to build a network of small airports since 1960’s, connecting most territories throughout the country. For the test flight of EHang 216, CAA Norway looks forward to witnessing it at Elvenes airport.

Bente Heggedal, Head of section for unmanned aviation, CAA Norway and Hu Huazhi, EHang Founder, Chairman, CEO.

Bente Heggedal, the Head of section for unmanned aviation, CAA Norway commented, “EHang is an exciting and forward-looking project that shows the rapid development of UAM and AAV technology by today. The autonomous passenger aircrafts of the future can contribute to more efficient transport, particularly in urban areas, and the electric models are a great contribution to the green shift. We look forward to EHang demonstrating a well-proven and secure system, so that passenger AAVs can be a safe alternative for passenger transport.”

Surrounded by sea on three sides and rich in oil and gas (O&G) resources, Norway is a big exporter of O&G. According to Norway’s 2020 National Budget, its oil industry contributes to 14% of its GDP and one fifth of the national income. In addition, an economic survey by Statistics Norway projected the country’s total oil investment to reach $18.3 billion in 2020, accounting for 19% of the nation’s total investment.

At present, Norwegian offshore drilling platforms are still using helicopters for various transportation tasks such as personnel, spare parts, supplies, and O&G samples, which cost high in fuel and man powers.

EHang’s networked and intelligent AAV provides a safe, autonomous, and eco-friendly solution, it enables simultaneous control and real-time data exchange of multiple AAV through a command-and-control platform, which not only significantly saves cost in labor, but improves the operational efficiency by providing uninterrupted services 24-hours per day.

With key features of safety, automation, vertical take-off and landing, big payload, cluster management, efficiency, and low cost, the EHang’s AAV solution is expected to play a significant role in various tasks such as frequent and point-to-point O&G samples delivery, maintenance and inspection, wind power plant servicing, and transportation of radioactive materials, etc.

“In the new wave of the development of the oil industry in Norway, EHang expects to empower the O&G industry with our AAV technologies to reduce costs and increase efficiencies, and promote the use of green energy. In the past two years, we have established strategic partnerships with valuable European partners such as Vodafone, FACC and the ProSiebenSat.1 Group. We expect to work with more strategic partners and help them with our safe, autonomous, and eco-friendly air mobility solutions”, said Hu Huazhi, Founder, Chairman and CEO of EHang.

EHang became a publicly listed company on the Nasdaq Global Market on December 12^th, 2019 under the ticker symbol “EH”. On January 8, 2020, EHang received the first special flight authorization from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and conducted its first-ever trial flight of EHang 216 in America.

Why it matters: EHang is quickly expanding its presence around the world and is now making its mark on the European aerial mobility industry. With competitors in the region including the likes of Volocopter, the company will face fierce competition. However, EHang’s long record of successful test flights and certifications will make it a primary contender in the area for years to come.

Source: EHang

Joby Aviation, a budding eVTOL air taxi designer and manufacturer partially backed by Toyota, has begun work on its manufacturing facilities in Marina, California. In the latest news, Joby has begun leasing and renovating several hangars at the Marina Municipal Airport. According to Joby spokesperson Mojgan Khalili, the new facilities will be used to “support the development and manufacturing of our electric aircraft.” Eventually, the Joby space at Marina Airport may occupy as much as 30 acres.

The latest rendering of Joby Aircraft’s Air Taxi // Joby Aviation

Joby recently announced a notable Series C fundraising sum of over $720M with collaboration from investors like Toyota Motors and JIMCO, a major middle-eastern investment company. Joby is based in Northern California near its upcoming facilities in Marina, and only recently came out of ‘stealth mode’ with images of its latest prototype. Joby also recently announced its partnership with Uber Elevate to bring its world-wide electric urban air taxi vision to life.

Joby currently occupies three hangars at Marina taking up 30,000 square feet each, with plans to build an ‘aviation tent’ outside these facilities taking an additional 55,000 square feet. Architectural plans for the final aircraft manufacturing facility are already under review, which will take up 580,000 square feet total.

Although Joby has yet to say what specific activities will take place at the initial hangers and aviation tent, Joby’s intent is to establish a strong presence in the Marina community, bringing a wide variety of new air taxi related jobs to the area. According to posts from the city of Marina’s website, Joby is “already making a big impact on Marina with new jobs, improved airport facilities and new high tech interest in the community.” Joby has already employed 20 people full time in the Marina facility, and on some days, 40 people.

Why it’s important: Joby’s recent entrance into the field of highly funded air taxi companies further establishes the future of eVTOL. The impending reality of the air taxi industry is becoming very clear as Joby gears up to mass produce its aircraft.

Source // Monterey Herald