Results for: volocopter

Volocopter has announced this week the opening of its production facilities in Bruchsal, Germany. The facility includes final assembly lines and area on the airfield to conduct flight tests and pre-delivery quality checks. Volocopter stated in a press release that they have obtained regulatory approvals to produce up to 50 VoloCity aircraft each year.

Volocopter has held a production certificate with EASA since 2021 and the approvals cover the entire VoloCity production process including manufacture of carbon fiber components, assembly of the electric propulsion unit, and final assembly.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held on 4 April 2023 at the Bruchsal facility. The event also featured a crewed flight of the Volocopter 2X. Key guests included Dr. Volker Wissing, Federal Minister of Digital Affairs and Transport; Mr. Winfried Kretschmann, Minister of the State of Baden-Württemberg; Dr. Anna Christmann, Federal Government Coordinator for German Aerospace Policy; and upward of 70 business and political representatives.

“Right here is where the aircraft that will change how humanity moves about cities will take off and make its way across the world. This region is known for transforming mobility – the bicycle, the car, and soon Volocopter, too. Electric air taxis and Volocopter in particular is a technology made in Germany that will make the world a more sustainable place,” said Dirk Hoke, CEO of Volocopter.

“Germany is already a world leader in the development of air taxis, thanks in part to Volocopter’s great pioneering spirit. I would like to support and build on this leading role by creating a framework that enables innovation and progress. We are working with key industry players on a strategy for air taxi operations here in Germany, in which all technical and legal issues are addressed without delay. We are doing this so that the first drones carrying people and goods can take off very soon,” said Dr. Volker Wissing, Federal Minister of Digital and Transport.

Volocopter will spend the next month fully ramping up operations at the new production facility and expects to start offering commercial flight services in 2024.

Why it matters: Volocopter is advancing ahead of the competition with full scale assembly lines and production certificates to manufacture its Volocity eVTOL. While a long road is ahead for full vehicle certification and entry into service, Volocopter has made significant progress and appears on track for commercial operations next year.

Source: VoloCopter Press Release

Last week, Volocopter revealed a fully integrated vertiport terminal for urban air mobility operations of the future. The vertiport was shared via a launch event which provided an opportunity to demonstrate the end-to-end passenger journey, from arrival at the vertiport terminal to aircraft boarding.

The vertiport testbed will be located at Pontoise-Cormeilles, was designed by Skyports in collaboration with Groupe ADP, and will be aircraft agnostic. Volocopter plans to utilize this new vertiport as a chance to test the full vertical integration of aerial mobility ecosystem. Most importantly, it facilitates collaboration between the key ecosystem partners, including technology pioneers, regulators and local partners such as the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC), suppliers and airlines. The vertiport will specifically enable testing of:

• Vehicle integration, ground movement procedures, and charging procedures
• Flight scheduling, situational awareness, and information exchange
• Passenger journey through the terminal, including security and check-in processes, biometric technologies (provided by SITA), passenger dwell time, and aircraft boarding.

A model of the VoloCity, which is being developed as Volocopter’s first certified aircraft for commercial services, was featured at the launch in addition to a crewed test flight of the 2X model – the only aircraft currently authorized for eVTOL test flights in France. The series of demonstrations by Skyports and Volocopter also featured displays of flight monitoring capabilities and digital operating systems, including Skyports’ vertiport operating systems and the VoloIQ.

Why it’s important: Volocopter’s partnership with Skyports and Groupe ADP will serve to advance integration testing for aerial mobility efforts of the future and also flush out advanced higher level operational challenges of vertiport implementation. While a great deal of these advances can be simulated and evaluated via analysis, representative testing of the end-to-end operational spectrum within aerial mobility and the associated checkouts of full (or representative) missions will help better prepare the industry for initial rollout of urban air mobility services.

Volocopter has partnered with Singapore’s Institute of Technical Education (ITE) to launch a VoloCity public exhibition including free guided tours in the Lion City. This is Volocopter’s first exhibition to feature its commercial air taxi model in Asia, and the company’s first-ever long-term exhibition to open its doors to the public anywhere in the world.

Starting August 2022, Volocopter will be offering free guided tours on a regular basis. The company invites anyone interested in taking one to sign up here.

Located at Aerospace Hub, ITE College Central, the exhibition features a 3D VoloPort scale model and detailed information on both the UAM industry and Volocopter. Visitors will also have the chance to sit in the aircraft and get a sense of what this new form of transportation will be like.

Minister for Trade and Industry Mr Gan Kim Yong, and German Ambassador to Singapore Dr. Norbert Riedel, both attended the opening ceremony alongside other senior representatives from Singapore government agencies and Volocopter’s partners.

Gan Kim Yong said: “Singapore welcomes innovative companies like Volocopter which seek to build entirely new industries here. We are excited about the prospects of developing an Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) ecosystem in Singapore, and hope that through this exhibit, the public can learn more about this new form of urban mobility.”

Singapore is one of the first launch cities for Volocopter. The German company conducted Asia’s first crewed public test flight of an air taxi in a city centre over Singapore’s iconic Marina Bay in 2019, and has been working very closely with the city. It is committed to launching the UAM services in Singapore in the next couple of years. It has recently released a dedicated roadmap that revealed its UAM services could generate an estimated SGD 4.18 billion in cumulative economic benefits and create up to 1,300 jobs in Singapore by 2030.

Why it’s important: Earlier this year, Volocopter Completed the first full-scale flight of its VoloCity eVTOL and it’s now ready for regular public visbility. According to Chief Commercial Officer, Christian Bauer, “This is the perfect time to showcase our VoloCity in Singapore, as our latest local market survey showed a significant uptick in the proportion of respondents who are excited to try an air taxi service. We hope to increase public awareness and education on this new form of mobility and the many ways it will benefit Singapore. We are partnering with local institutions and organizations as we build our UAM ecosystem.”

Since 2020, Diehl Aerospace and Volocopter have partnered on the development of avionics for Volocopter’s VoloCity eVTOL aircraft. The two companies will now expand the scope of their partnership to include the development of optical and energy management components of these avionics.

Diehl Aerospace is a joint venture of the German Diehl Group and the French Thales Group. It currently supplies cabin liners, lavatories, galleys, cabin lighting, avionics, fire protection, and air distribution systems to a variety of commercial and military customers including Boeing and Airbus.

Above: The Volocopter Volocity eVTOL, which is already undergoing test flights

Last week, Diehl announced they will expand their partnership with Volocopter to develop “fly-by-light” avionics and energy management components. In a company press release, Diehl goes on to explain that they will develop an optical splitter and data concentrator unit which will use light signals and optic fiber to transmit information rather than traditional copper “fly-by-wire” applications.

This next generation technology eliminates issues with electromagnetic interference and will increase overall safety in operations of Volocopter’s VoloCity.

With use of the Fly-by-Light technology in the eVTOL VoloCity, Diehl seeks to make significant contribution to ensuring maximum safety and high reliability in the aerial mobility industry. “We are excited to further expand our partnership with Volocopter, an innovative pioneer in the UAM market, bringing our many years of experience and expertise in flight control systems to the table,” said Florian Maier, CEO of Diehl Aerospace.

In addition to providing the Volocity’s flight control system, Diehl will also supply further sub-components for the Battery Management System of the VoloCity. The Battery Management system will monitor and manage the health of battery packs installed in the aircraft, again increasing vehicle safety. The VoloCity features nine battery packs that are replaced and recharged after each flight. In order to monitor the battery status during the flight, the pilot receives all flight-relevant information via the Battery Management system such as remaining energy, and options to control the power supply levels.

Why it matters: Volocopter’s partnership with Diehl greatly increases its technical competitiveness with other aerial mobility manufacturers. With decades-long experience in developing components for commercial airliners, Diehl has an opportunity to apply its technical prowess in a new segment. With this announcement, Volocopter continues to move towards entry to commercial service and intends to bring its VoloCity to the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Source // Volocopter, Dhiel

Related:

• Volocopter Completes First Full-Scale Flight of VoloCity eVTOL (April 2022)
• Volocopter Receives Production Approval from EASA (July 2021)
• Thales and Diehl Aerospace to Develop Flight Computers for CityAirbus NextGen (November 2021)

On Tuesday, June 7th at the UP.Summit, an annual gathering of leaders in future mobility hosted by investment firm UP.Partners, urban air mobility (UAM) pioneer Volocopter announced that it has achieved another important aerial mobility milestone: its fixed-winged passenger aircraft, the VoloConnect, completed its first flight in May 2022. This accomplishment makes Volocopter the only eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft) developer worldwide to have an entire fleet of distinct aircraft configurations undergoing flight tests, and features entry to the regional electric aviation market of another serious contender, alongside the upcoming first flight of Eviation’s Alice and recently acquired by SurfAir’s Ampaire aircraft, along with VoltAero’s Cassio aircraft.

The VoloConnect offers further and faster journeys than any other Volocopter aircraft, with a range of over 60 mi and flight speeds above 155 mph. The passenger plane’s extended range and higher payload will bring business travelers and commuters beyond the city center on routes like Burbank to Huntington Beach in Los Angeles, CA. With the VoloCity and VoloConnect air taxi designs fulfilling demands for metropolitan flights and suburban connections in densely populated regions respectively, Volocopter is ready to serve a broader range of passengers’ flight needs. Moreover, the VoloConnect is targeting a 2026 entry into service, while the VoloCity is targeting commercial launch in 2024. 

Volocopter designed the VoloConnect and its other eVTOL aircraft to meet the highest aviation safety standards according to EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency). The prototype completed its first flight in May 2022 after just 17 months in the making and performed a few maneuvers for 2 minutes and 14 seconds during its first flight. The prototype has all the planned aerodynamics and performance features of the future commercial product.

The VoloConnect is a lift-and-cruise aircraft optimized for missions beyond the urban and suburban space. Keeping moving parts to a minimum, its six rotors facilitate vertical takeoff, while two electric fans in combination with uplift-creating wings ensure high forward speeds. The VoloConnect prototype is currently being put through a demanding series of flight tests to verify that the aircraft and its systems are in line with the performance limits and prepared for the subsequent development steps. This phase encompasses a raft of different tests, including standardized low-speed, transition, high-speed, and engine failure testing for automated and later autonomous flights – all standard-issue tests for an eVTOL passenger aircraft manufacturer. Within the first three test flights of this campaign, the team was able to verify a significant portion of the eVTOL’s envelope with forward speeds up to 40 mph and 28 mph sideward flight speeds during tests. The test flight envelope will be gradually opened as part of the test flight campaign over the coming weeks.

VoloConnect is poised to boost Volocopter’s total addressable UAM market, alongside its existing aircraft family members, the VoloDrone and VoloCity. When combined, these three prototypes address each portion of the aerial mobility market in short, regional/medium, and heavy haul/logistical applications.

For future services, Volocopter intends to fully integrate all three aircraft into individualized UAM ecosystems for cities and use its VoloIQ digital platform to unite all of the company’s flight operations, passenger services, maintenance, and more for a seamless mobility experience. 

Why it’s important: Volocopter’s approach to the aerial mobility market isn’t hedged on a single, one-sized fits all solution because the current technological readiness levels of various components of the aircraft make it impractical for an optimized design for all three cases. Accordingly, Volcopter’s progress on this segment of their aircraft fleet offering is an important milestone for the company, and the aerial mobility industry as whole on the road toward next generation transportation solutions.

Volcopter, the German-based eVTOL manufacturer, has completed its first flight of Volocity. The VoloCity will be the fourth-generation electrical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL) by the company since its founding.

Volocity is propelled by 18 rotors, with redundancy in all critical systems, a low noise signature and a rigid commitment to the inner-city mission. According to Volocopter, “the VoloCity will become the first commercially licensed Volocopter, developed according to the high standards and requirements of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Our intensive testing programme has informed the innovative design and the outstanding overall performance of the VoloCity. Quiet, safe, and comfortable, the Volocity engenders Urban Air Mobility.”

VoloCity was announced in 2019 and released a re-design in 2020 and intends to be fully certified and ready for commercial entry to service in conjunction with the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Volocopter commented on a blog post of the first flight, “Today, we celebrate a remarkable achievement: the culmination of our aspiration to create a better future in which electric aircraft and emission-free flights are the new dimension of global mobility. As Volocopter taxis toward this new frontier, it will make urban flights just a few smartphone clicks away. These moments demonstrate how our pioneering spirit will bring our vision to life before our very eyes. And it’s just the push we need as we enter the final leg of the race to commercial launch.”

Why it matters: While not the most exciting of flights, the short hover test marks a significant milestone for Volocopter’s VoloCity program as it transitions from a concept to a real aircraft. As testing progresses, expect to see VoloCity’s flight envelope expand to meet the desired operating characteristics and work begin towards EASA certification in 2024.

On 21 March 2022, Volocopter became the first eVTOL developer to conduct both crewed and remotely piloted test flights in France. The crewed flights were part of a week-long urban air mobility (UAM) test campaign that will give Volocopter and its partners – Groupe ADP and RATP Group – key insights for subsequently launching the UAM industry in time for the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Volocopter’s full-scale testing prototype, the Volocopter 2X, was used to perform successful flight tests at Pontoise airfield in Paris to measure the aircraft’s noise emissions. This data will be used by the company’s partners to shape the future of urban air mobility services in and around Paris.

Said Christian Bauer (photographed to the left), Chief Commercial Officer of Volocopter: “We have demonstrated our pioneering power once again here in Paris. By flying our aircraft in a crewed configuration at a Paris airport, we are proving to one of our launch cities firsthand that our aircraft will offer a practical addition for potential airport-to-city routes.”

Volocopter first flew its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft in France uncrewed at the Paris Air Forum held in June 2021. Together with its partners, the company is gearing up for commercial launch in the next 2–3 years.

UAM, short for Urban Air Mobility, refers to the subcategory of advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft such as eVTOLs and the infrastructure involved with operating those aircraft in and around cities. Seen as an addition to existing ground transportation options, UAM supports the development of environmentally friendly mobility solutions, and will offer cities worldwide a unique mix of urban multimodal transportation systems.

Why it’s important: The UAM testing sandbox at Pontoise airfield addresses the challenges of this new form of mobility directly by assessing UAM solution use, acceptability, regulations, technologies, and industrialization. Furthermore, the airfield offers a real and secure aeronautical environment in a suburban area, 35 km northwest of Paris. If Volocopter can successfully erect the required infrastructure in time for the 2024 Olympics, the company has potential to establish itself as a leader in the European UAM industry.

Source // Volocopter press release

Volocopter announced on March 4th that they’ve raised USD 170 million in the initial signing of their Series E funding round led by South Korean investor WP Investment, at a pre-money valuation of USD 1.7 billion. Composed of funds by new and existing investors, the money raised will assist with the certification of Volocopter’s electric passenger air taxi and is expected to help Volocopter achieve commercial launch in first cities worldwide. 

Volocopter is developing new and sustainable mobility options for cities around the world. With its family of aircraft (the VoloCity, VoloConnect, and VoloDrone), the company takes a unique approach by developing urban air mobility (UAM) as a holistic ecosystem. Having ten years of development experience, Volocopter has long been considered a leader in the urban air mobility space. As the first and only electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) company to receive Design Organisation Approval (DOA) from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Volocopter has committed to launching commercial air taxi services in cities like Singapore, Rome, and Paris.  

WP Investment based in Seoul, Republic of Korea, is a leading and new investor for Volocopter in this funding round. Following this announcement, Volocopter and WP Investment will enter into a strategic partnership by creating a joint venture that will soon bring urban air mobility to South Korea’s cities.  

“We are confident that Volocopter will be among the first to bring UAM to cities globally, since seeing its aircraft fly in Seoul last year. As a leader in ESG investment, we are excited to empower city sustainability through Volocopter,” says Dr. Lei Wang, Chairman of WP Investment. Co-Chairman Tiffany Park said: “We are excited to kick off our joint venture and be the first to establish sustainable eVTOL logistics and air taxi services with Volocopter in Korea.” 

New investors in Volocopter include WP Investment and Honeywell, amongst others. Many existing investors including Atlantia, Whysol, and btov Partners, have also increased their investment in this round.  

“Our successful first signing of Series E brings phenomenal new investors on board, with further in the due diligence stage. This private funding round allows us to stay focused on our mission to bring sustainable urban air mobility to life,” said Stefan Klocke, Chairman of Volocopter’s Advisory Board. “We have never been in a stronger position: we are financially diversified, certification of the aircraft is within reach, and we are demonstrating our advanced capabilities by public flights and strong joint-ventures across the world.” 

The company recently announced that it has entered a financing agreement in principle with Aviation Capital Group (ACG) to shape the sale and leasing of Volocopter aircraft for up to USD 1 billion. Once aircraft certification has been achieved, this agreement will allow Volocopter to offer its operating entities and customers worldwide attractive leasing options, a key to rapidly scaling the business in the future. 

Why it’s important: Further investment in Volocopter continues to indicate the confidence in aerial mobility’s activation in the coming years and the road toward certified eVTOL aircraft in the future. While there are hurdles to overcome prior to full scale deployment of these types of aircraft at scale, mountains of investment are funding the next generation of transportation technology. Further, many of the technologies that companies such as Volocopter are integration for the first time have ample applications in other sectors of the transportation industry; allowing for greater influence in sectors beyond just aerial mobility.

Volocopter announced today that it expects to deliver SGD 4.18 billion in cumulative economic benefits to Singapore by 2030. This is just one of the many benefits that Volocopter’s UAM services will bring to the city-state, according to the company’s “Singapore Roadmap” plan which was also released today. The document shares details on the potential routes, use cases, and operational considerations of Volocopter in Singapore.

“We are excited to have progressed to the next step of our UAM journey in Singapore today, by presenting a roadmap that sets out further details on the business and operation plans leading up to our commercial launch in the next two years,” said Christian Bauer, Chief Commercial Officer of Volocopter. “This can only be achieved through our close collaboration we have been fostering for the last few years with the Singaporean authorities and other local partners.”

Highlights from this Singapore Roadmap include:

• Volocopter’s internal studies show that its UAM services can generate an estimated SGD 4.18 billion in cumulative economic benefits and create up to 1,300 local jobs by 2030.  

• UAM will serve as an enabler to achieve the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and act as an engine for economic growth in a post-pandemic world. 

• The initial launch will be tourist flights over Marina Bay and Sentosa, then expand its network to include cross-border flights to Indonesia and Malaysia. 

• Volocopter envisions four to six VoloPorts in Singapore by 2030. Areas being considered:  Marina South, Sentosa, and Changi. 

• Volocopter’s consumer study in Singapore showed that 72% of those surveyed expressed high interest in flying in a VoloCity.

Volocopter was the first-ever electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) company to conduct a crewed air taxi flight in a city. The flight over the city-state’s iconic Marina Bay in 2019 gave observers firsthand experience of what an air taxi looks and sounds like. Working closely with several key stakeholders, such as the Ministry of Transport, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, and the Economic Development Board, the company has committed to launching UAM in Singapore as one of the first cities globally.

Volocopter is the only eVTOL developer that has a family of electrically powered aircraft including air taxis for short and long urban routes (the VoloCity and VoloConnect) and heavy-lift drones for goods (the VoloDrone). It is also the first and only eVTOL company holding both the required design and production organization approvals (DOA and POA) to advance its aircraft toward commercial launch.

Volocopter will be running a booth at the upcoming Singapore Airshow at the German Pavilion (C-L69).

Why it’s important: A growing number of aerial mobility companies, and host countries, are working to develop roadmaps which entail frameworks for the ultimate large-scale integration of eVTOL aircraft into their transportation networks. These roadmaps are evolving rapidly, but take the lessons learned and strengths of aerial mobility hardware development to date in mind to ensure the industry is best positioned for future success. Expect further announcements from Volocopter and other aerial mobility companies during the Singapore Airshow occurring this week.

Volocopter is on the move again with an announcement this week of its joint venture with NEOM, a development focused on sustainable living and innovation in Saudi Arabia.

Seamlessly integrating nature with technology, NEOM’s OXAGON will be the launchpad where innovative technologies and ideas get put to the test.

NEOM has confirmed an initial order of 15 Volocopter aircraft consisting of 10 VoloCity passenger eVTOLs for public transit and five VoloDrone cargo drones for logistics. Both sides of the joint venture believe these vertical mobility services can succeed as an integral part of NEOM’s three-dimensional, zero-emissions public mobility system.

NEOM CEO Nadhmi Al-Nasr spoke to the agreement, “In designing cities and urban infrastructure for the 21st century, mobility is at the center of the equation. Through this joint venture with Volocopter, we are demonstrating to the world that NEOM is the ideal region to implement urban air mobility rapidly and create a fully integrated vertical mobility ecosystem. NEOM is on a mission to become a global living lab for future mobility, and we are very excited to see what the future holds as we grow.”

From the company’s site, NEOM is a region in northwest Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea being built from the ground up as a living laboratory — a place where entrepreneurship will chart the course for the future. As a hub for innovation, entrepreneurs, business leaders and companies will come to NEOM to research, incubate and commercialize new technologies and enterprises in ground-breaking ways.

With other key investments in alternative energy sources and ground-based mobility innovations, NEOM will be a window into the cities and developments of the future.

Nadhmi Al-Nasr, CEO at NEOM and Christian Bauer, CCO at Volocopter signs joint venture agreement

“The partnership NEOM and the new JV we are creating together is going to be an exciting journey. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be an essential part of designing and operating a completely new UAM ecosystem from the ground up without the constraint of legacy infrastructure or regulation, and as pioneers in the industry, Volocopter is honored to be the trusted partner to contribute to NEOM’s ambitious vision,” said Christian Bauer, Chief Commercial Officer at Volocopter.

Volocopter 2-passenger, autonomous VoloCity eVTOL, which will be implemented at NEOM

Why it matters: Volocopter is already engaged with and planning numerous continuous operations in cities across the globe including Los Angeles, Japan, and Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games. Its expertise will be a home run for showcasing eVTOL technologies as the world looks to NEOM for demonstrating the future of how people will live, work, and travel.

Volocopter announced on November 17^th that the VoloCity will be featured in the upcoming Microsoft Flight Simulator. The announcement occurred at CoMotion LA, from Christian Bauer, Volocopter CCO. “We partnered with the experts at Urban Movement Labs to approach important stakeholders in Los Angeles, a highly relevant US city for us. Now, we are bringing our aircraft to the city to empower people with knowledge about UAM and first-hand experience with our aircraft. We are providing this learning opportunity onsite at CoMotion LA and virtually also to people across the world on 18 November with the new Microsoft Flight Simulator release, where Volocopter is included as the first electric air taxi.”

Earlier this year, Volocopter announced its partnership with Urban Movement Labs (UML), a nonprofit organization facilitating the deployment of new mobility technologies in Los Angeles. Volocopter is working with UML to network with key interest groups on the federal and city levels. This collaboration opens the door for discussions between Volocopter and local entities interested in launching UAM services in the future.

Depiction of Volocopter in MS Flight Simulator. Image // Volocopter

“Our partnership with Volocopter expands the work we are executing as a part of the UAM Partnership with the City of Los Angeles.  This work will inform the future UAM ecosystem in L.A. using a community-first strategy, conducted with Angelenos for Angelenos. By working together with Urban Movement Labs, Volocopter is showing their commitment to keeping the community in mind, and we are proud to be partnering with these pioneers on this journey and facilitating their market entry,” says Sam Morrissey, Executive Director at Urban Movement Labs.

In January of this year, Volocopter announced its intention to bring air taxis to US cities. In July, Volocopter conducted the first-ever crewed public test flight of a fully electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) air taxi in the US. Soon, people in LA and worldwide will also be able to experience virtual flights in the VoloCity in the newest release of Microsoft Flight Simulator (MSFS). In a partnership with the MSFS team, Volocopter’s VoloCity will be the first rotor-based vehicle in MSFS.

“Volocopter’s vision of urban air mobility is compelling, and we are delighted to present a hands-on preview of the aircraft inside Microsoft Flight Simulator. We had a great time working closely with the engineering and design teams at Volocopter during the last 6 months and are pleased with how accurate the electric VoloCity was realized in Microsoft Flight Simulator. Starting tomorrow, flight simmers and aviation enthusiasts everywhere can experience this extraordinary aircraft for the first time,” says Jorg Neumann, Head of Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Why it’s important: The cross-branding of Volcopter’s leading eVTOL product with the digital reflection of the airplane in Microsoft Flight Simulator is another means for the aerial mobility industry to expand and reinforce its influence among aviation, and on a larger scale, mobility as a whole. Partnerships between companies such as Microsoft and Volocopter will grow the sphere of influence of aerial mobility and provide an engaging, fast-paced means for learning and interaction with the next generation of transportation methods. This also means a wider age range of audience.

Thomas Senkel, one of the original founders of the company that eventually became Volocopter, has now unveiled his own eVTOL concept that features a tandem fixed-wing design for optimized efficiency.In 2011, Thomas Senkel became one of the world’s first people to take flight aboard a prototype multi-copter. That original prototype was made up of of sixteen rotors that held up a yoga ball which acted as a seat for the single passenger aircraft. At the time, the group of people responsible for creating the prototype formed the company ‘e-Volo’, which eventually changed its name to Volocopter. Volocopter is now one of the world’s top eVTOL air taxi creators, having made partnerships all over the world, received production approval from EASA, and raised over $200 million in startup funding.

IN 2016, Senkel chose to part from Volocopter, explaining that although he believed in the company’s air taxi vision, he wanted to create a vehicle with increased flight efficiency and greater range capabilities. He most recently said, “”I’ve always been unhappy with pure multicopters, because they are so inefficient. There must be a better way: combining an efficient aircraft with VTOL props leads to five times more range and endurance.”

Michael Kügelgen, left (co-founder of eMagic), and Thomas Senkel (right) pose with e-Magic’s new aircraft.

eMagic, the new company founded by Senkel and partner Michael Kügelgen, have created an aircraft that has a range of about 120 miles with a 90mph cruise speed. Volocopter original aircraft, the Volocopter 2X, had an intra-city range of only about 20 miles. The eMagic aircraft features a total 9 propellers; 8 lift-providing propellers fitted onto cross-bars, and one larger ‘puller’ propeller at nose of the aircraft. The prototype has already been iterated several times, and has even undergone several successful manned test flights, having been flown by Senkel himself.

Senkel mentioned, “The tandem wing configuration gives excellent flight characteristics. It’s impossible to stall it. It softly goes into a higher sink rate when the stick is pulled, but it remains controllable all the time. This behavior is very useful for transition between flight modes.”

It’s worth mentioning that in May of 2021, Volocopter itself unveiled a higher-range, higher efficiency fixed wing aircraft called the Voloconnect, which will be capable of achieving up to about 60 miles of range. This aircraft will not replace its original shorter range aircraft, but will add to Volocopter’s aircraft family for longer-distance applicatications.

Why it’s important: Thomas Senkel’s unveiling of the e-magic aircraft further proves out the diversity of the eVTOL air taxi market. While shorter range, intra-city products like Volocopter’s Volocity have a wide range of key applications especially within dense urban areas, there will also be great demand for longer range aircraft that are designed for more medium range ‘middle-mile’ transport applications. While both approaches are certain to have success in different market segments, eMagic’s new eVTOL represents a new kind of aircraft design the will further push forward the capabilities of this new generation of aircraft.

Source // NewsAtlas, eMagic

Volocopter has moved one step closer to commercialization of its eVTOL prototype. The company announced this week it has received its Production Organization Approval (POA) from EASA, the aviation regulatory authority presiding over the EU. The approval allows the company to begin production of its eVTOL aircraft for public deliveries.

Volocopter also received design organization approval (DOA) for its aircraft in 2019 and is the only eVTOL company to hold DOA and POA from EASA, according to the release.

In situ with the announcement, Volocopter also announced the acquisition of its partner, DG Flugzeugbau, a composite aircraft producer. Together with DG Flugzeugbau, Volocopter designed and built the VC200, the first electrically powered multicopter to receive a permit to fly it in 2016 and flew this model autonomously in Dubai in 2017 and on stage at the 2018 CES in Las Vegas. Since then, the two companies have partnered to produce the Volocopter 2X, the VoloDrone, and the VoloCity.

“Our ten-year partnership with DG Flugzeugbau has been an extraordinary learning experience,” Florian Reuter, CEO of Volocopter, said in a statement. “Having this legendary industry leader on our side to kick-start scalable and affordable UAM for people and cargo has been a game changer. Today marks an exciting milestone as we unify DG Flugzeugbau’s leadership in aviation production with Volocopter’s pioneering UAM goals to establish yet another crucial stepping-stone for our collective global endeavors.”

Volocopter has had a longtime partnership with DG Flugzeugbau and will utilize its facilities to scale its commercial launch in the coming years. The acquisition will allow Volocopter to integrate DG Flugzeugbau’s aircraft production segment and its new EASA POA, according to the release.

“At DG Flugzeugbau, we have always continued to strive for perfection through unique innovation with gliders, vast aerodynamic improvements, and, for the past ten years, with Volocopter’s eVTOLs,” Holger Back, CEO of DG Aviation, said in a statement. “We see the future in these aircraft and are excited to combine a section of our company with Volocopter to invest in the future of sustainable aviation while continuing our tradition of building gliders and maintaining aircraft.”

Why it matters: Volocopter is quickly building a ecosystem of aerial mobility products and services including VoloCity, VoloConnect, VoloDrone, VoloPorts, among others. The POA award from EASA ensures the company’s technical maturity has reached a level to support mass production of its prototype and will be suited for the public in the near future. Further, the acquisition of DG Flugzeugbau will help scale its operations for success in the market for years to come.