Results for: wisk

Aerial mobility developer Wisk has officially announced a partnership with BLADE Urban Air Mobility to provide and operate up to 30 eVTOL aircraft on key routes. Wisk, originally founded from Larry Page’s Kitty Hawk, is developer of the all-electric, autonomous Cora aircraft, which has already conducted hundreds of flight tests, and has partnered with the likes of Boeing and Air New Zealand.

Blade and Wisk intend to deploy the Cora eVTOL aircraft on short distance routes between BLADE’s dedicated terminals. Wisk will maintain ownership and operating rights of the vehicles and has agreed to flight hour minimums with BLADE.

In addition to the announcement, the two companies have agreed to create a taskforce that will research the deployment of technologies necessary to expedite aircraft charging and implement next-generation air traffic management. The partnership combines Wisk’s technical expertise in vehicle design and operations with BLADE’s six years of operations experience in helicopter aerial mobility.

“We look forward to working with Wisk to help accelerate Blade’s transition from conventional rotorcraft to safe, quiet, emission-free Electric Vertical Aircraft,” said Rob Wiesenthal, CEO of Blade.

“This arrangement validates that UAM is the future of mobility,” said Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk. “To date, we have been focused on developing an aircraft and customer experience that is efficient, accessible, and — most importantly — safe. The combination of our expertise as an autonomous eVTOL aircraft manufacturer and operator, with the operational expertise of Blade, will help usher in an even greater level of safety and service.”

“The Wisk-Blade arrangement is a perfect fit for our asset light model,” said Will Heyburn, CFO and Head of Corporate Development for Blade. “Backed by Boeing’s deep aerospace experience, Wisk will own, operate and maintain their aircraft as part of our network, allowing Blade to focus on delivering a great experience to our fliers.”

Why it matters: Through this partnership, Wisk will become one of the first eVTOL manufacturers to reach commercial operation in the U.S, by utilizing BLADE’s platform and existing business and operations infrastructure. BLADE conversely benefits by leveraging eVTOLs as an early adopter, with less risk than being a developer, since Wisk will maintain ownership and day-to-day operation of the vehicles. Notably, this is BLADE’s second eVTOL developer partnership, closely following a deal with Beta Technologies last month.

Source: Wisk Press Release

Reportedly, special emphasis is also being placed on National Campaign safety scenarios: autonomous flight, contingency management, including collision avoidance, and flight path management.

Robert Pearce, Associate Administrator for NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, said, “Wisk brings a tremendous amount of experience in eVTOL vehicle development, automation technologies, and flight test, and combines it with a safety-first mindset towards advancing autonomous flight. NASA believes our partnership with Wisk will help accelerate the realization of exciting new Advanced Air Mobility missions.”

NASA’s Advanced Aerial Mobility Initiative aims to accelerate aerial mobility progress. Image Credit // NASA

NASA and Wisk will collaborate to define future means of advancing the aerial mobility industry – while new certification standards might not be defined until they’re officially confirmed by regulating bodies such as the FAA or EASA, the joint venture will allow creation of common engineering design and development standards in order to establish common minimum operable products within the industry, and hopefully propel those that already meet or exceed standards even further. Some of these standards definition areas include flight path management, airspace integration, minimum performance requirements, and general flight procedures.

“Our partnership with NASA will bring together our market-leading expertise in autonomy with the unmatched technical capabilities of NASA,” said Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk. “The frameworks and recommendations developed through this collaboration will not only advance autonomous passenger flight but also increase the overall safety of aviation.”

Why it’s important: Wisk’s partnership with NASA is unique in that it represents a high-visibility public private partnership to advance aerial mobility between a government organization and a private company. This partnership affords both participants the opportunity to leverage the other’s resources while also mutually benefiting the entire aerial mobility industry. Such partnerships in large scale commercial aerospace are very uncommon at present since the amount of shared intellectual property would lead to eradication of most competitive advantages. While it remains to be seen the level of data disclosure that will accompany this collaboration, hopefully the benefits of NASA and Wisk’s work are able to cast a broad reach among other advanced autonomous aerial mobility development efforts.

Source // PR News Wire

WISK, the company behind the WISK Cora autonomous electric air taxi, has announced that Eric Johnson has joined the company as Senior Vice President of Engineering and will serve on the company’s Executive Leadership Team.

The WISK CORA autonomous electric air taxi in flight

WISK, a project resulting from collaboration between air taxi developer KittyHawk, aviation giant Boeing, and the New Zealand government, is now one of the world’s most advanced air taxi companies. Automated airspace integration testing has already begun in New Zealand, and commercial operations in the country are planned to begin within five years, putting WISK in an excellent position to be one of the first air taxi companies in full operation.

Prior to joining WISK, Eric Johnson was a Chief Engineer supporting Boeing NeXt, where he directed the engineering development and product safety for a joint team. Eric also served as Product Development Chief Engineer for the Boeing 777X program and Chief Engineer and Airplane Level Integration Team Leader for the 777-8 program, and has held multiple management and engineering positions in Airplane Safety, Electromagnetic Effects, Flight Sciences, Flight Test, Certification and Sales.

At WISK, Johnson will be responsible for executing the company’s technical vision and roadmap, overseeing the development of current and future aircraft, and directing Wisk’s software, hardware, systems engineering, flight test, certification and product management teams.

Said Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk: ““We are thrilled to have Eric join us. (He) brings strong technical and problem-solving skills with a long history in delivering certified platforms to the commercial marketplace. His demonstrated leadership in innovative aircraft development, integration, certification, testing, and customer engagement is a great benefit to us as we move forward.”

New WISK Senior Vice President of Engineering Eric Johnson

“I’m thrilled to be joining a company that’s shaping the future of the UAM   space,” said Johnson. “Wisk’s greatest strengths are its people, it’s safety-   first culture and its commitment to innovation. I’m proud to now be part of the team that will make safe, everyday flight a reality.” –Eric Johnson

Why it’s important: With this latest hire, WISK adds to its growing team of aviation industry experts that are ready to make autonomous, electric, everyday flight in New Zealand and elsewhere a reality. Combined with the other recent add of Pete Kunz (Chief Technologist for Boeing NeXt) to its board, WISK indicates its intent to grow as well as Boeing’s strong direction of resources towards the WISK project.

Related:

• Wisk Adds Dr. Pete Kunz to its Board
• Wisk Resumes Flight Tests
• Wisk’s Newest Details on the Cora Air Taxi

Source // WISK

Wisk this week has announced the addition of Dr. Pete Kunz to its board.

Dr. Kunz is the Chief Technologist for Boeing NeXt, as well as Boeing’s Senior Chief Engineer for Unpiloted Systems. Previously, Dr. Kunz held several leadership roles, including chief technology officer at Insitu, Inc., an unmanned aerial systems and services (UAS) company where he led both commercial and defense technical development.

“We are pleased to welcome Pete to our board,” said Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk. “His background in aerospace engineering and his experience in various aspects of the analysis, design and testing of autonomous aircraft is incredibly valuable as we continue the development and certification process for our self-flying air taxi.”

As one of the visionary leaders behind Boeing NeXt’s UAM strategy, Dr. Kunz’s background in autonomous aircraft brings additional technical and industry expertise to Wisk’s board. Dr. Kunz shares a long history of success in the industry and is recognized as a leader in the UAM space. He shares Wisk’s commitment to transforming the future of urban mobility.

“What I see happening at Wisk is extremely exciting and I love the culture that continues to be built there,” said Kunz. “I’m looking forward to helping the company work through the next phase of their aircraft development and bringing safe, autonomous flight to market.”

Dr. Kunz has a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics from Stanford University, as well as master’s and bachelor’s degrees in aerospace engineering from Penn State.

Dr. Peter Kunz

Why it matters: Dr. Kunz’s extensive experience in the UAM space in both academia and industry will add visionary leadership to the Wisk board. Wisk has a diverse board and leadership team giving it a competitive advantage in aerial mobility.

Source: Wisk Press Release

After a brief pause in flight testing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, air taxi company Wisk has resumed flight tests of the Cora aircraft in both the U.S and New Zealand. 

Wisk is the result of joint venture between Kitty Hawk and Boeing, in collaboration with Air New Zealand and the New Zealand Government.

Wisk was established in 2019 as a joint venture between The Boeing Company and Kitty Hawk Corporation, in collaboration with Air New Zealand. The Cora aircraft itself was originally created by Kitty Hawk, which has now transitioned to working on its latest aircraft, the Heaviside. As of February 2020, Wisk had signed a partnership with the government of New Zealand to eventually bring Cora’s autonomous air taxi capabilities to the country’s transportation infrastructure. The MoU signed that month allowed Wisk to begin conducting the world’s first full airspace integration trial of an autonomous eVTOL in Canterbury, a large region of New Zealand.

The now-resumed flight tests will evaluate the performance of the aircraft in a real world environment, while collecting data that will help inform the further development, operation, safety features and certification of the Cora aircraft. Prior to the to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company had completed over 1300 test flights to expand the flight envelope, provide data for modeling, improve overall design, and complete procedures to operate the aircraft safely and efficiently.

The Wisk Cora on the ground, making its many propellors visible.

Says Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk, “The team’s dedication over the past few months has allowed us to remain focused on critical non-flight areas, such as certification, software development, and operations. This has allowed us to maintain momentum during this unique time. But it’s awesome to be flying again.”

Carl Engel, Director, Flight Test for Wisk, comments: “Our first priority has always been safety, both for our employees and in the development of our aircraft. As we return to flight testing, we have implemented a number of procedures and social distancing measures based on best practices and recommendations from local and national health and government organizations.”

Why it’s important: While the COVID-19 pandemic certainly put a temporary hold on physical flight tests, the team at Wisk was successfully able to use that time to achieve many important goals working from home, focusing on subjects like operations, certification, and critical software. Given that Wisk was able to adjust its development workflow so quickly, it was likely able to reduce a great deal of the negative impact of the pandemic slow-down, and now can resume flight testing without delay.

After recently announcing plans to conduct flight trials in New Zealand, the aspiring air taxi company Wisk has released details regarding the Cora, its autonomous electric air taxi vehicle.

The Cora is a two-seat autonomous aircraft powered by twelve boom-mounted independent lifting propellers enabling vertical flight. Designed to be autonomous from the start, Wisk CEO Gary Gysin emphasized the focus on safety for the development of the pilotless vehicle. “It also has a parachute recovery system,” said Gysin, “It is one of several safety aspects of the design. Whenever we fly along a route we always have multiple emergency landing spots and, being able to land anywhere, you have space everywhere in an emergency. And as a last resort we also have the emergency parachute—there is no single design point of failure.”

The Cora air taxi

Gysin and Wisk are aiming for a market niche centered around the two-seater design. “We are going straight to self-flying with two seats, so it is not optionally piloted”, said Gysin, “The sweet spot is anywhere from 30-to-60 mile range with reserves and 100 kt.-plus in speed. But based on the analysis we’ve done from a commuter perspective, when we are attacking that kind of market most of it says you are looking at 1.6 to 1.7 riders per vehicle. Clearly that data comes from the auto market, but we think that extrapolates into this market.” 

Wisk is a partner in the New Zealand government’s Airspace Integration Trials program, and the Cora will be certified by the New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority, which has been working with Wisk and its predecessor companies for several years. “We have a certification basis to fly already and we are finishing that up and hope to get that soon,” Gysin said. “We have made a conscious decision not to give certain dates. We will fly when it’s safe and we are certified.” 

Why it’s important: Backed by Google co-founder Larry Page, Wisk and the Cora are in the running for one of the most anticipated air taxi rideshare services in the coming decade. With several conscious decisions made about how design of the Cora differs from other eVTOLs, the success of Wisk could help define how aerial mobility fills a market niche for transportation.

Source // Aviation Week

Related:

Wisk and New Zealand Government Partner for Autonomous Air Taxi Trials

The Cora eVTOL has been under development for almost ten years, and this week, aspiring air taxi operator Wisk signed an MoU with the New Zealand government in to conduct flight trials in Canterbury. The flight will represent the world’s first full airspace integration trial of an autonomous eVTOL.

Cora was developed by aerospace company Kittyhawk, which gave form to Wisk soon after forming a partnership with both Boeing and Air New Zealand. Ever since Wisk’s creation in 2019, the company has been working tirelessly to make its air taxi vision a reality, starting with New Zealand.

The Wisk Cora on the ground, making its many propellors visible.

The New Zealand Government announced in October of 2019 that it would establish an industry-wide Airspace Integration Trial program to safely test and demonstrate unmanned aircraft. Wisk, based in the United States and New Zealand, is the first company to join this program.

Said New Zealand’s Minister of Research Science and Innovation Hon. Dr. Megan Woods, “This trial is the first of its kind and Wisk’s innovative technology and commitment to New Zealand make them an ideal partner for advancing the future of travel in New Zealand and the world.”

Wisk CEO commented: “We are delighted to now have a signed agreement with the New Zealand Government, which will propel Cora’s entry to the air taxi market. We see this agreement as a sign of confidence in our product and abilities to develop and deliver a safe and reliable air taxi service, starting in New Zealand.”

The Airspace Integration Trial program is being centrally managed by New Zealand’s  Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Innovative Partnerships team, working alongside the Civil Aviation Authority, the Ministry of Transport and other key stakeholders to support industry partners to take their technology from testing to in-service operations.

Why it’s important: With this upcoming cutting-edge integration trail, Wisk puts itself forward as one of the world’s top budding eVTOL air taxi providers. By being first in New Zealand, Wisk will soon have a chance to fully develop and test an every-day urban air taxi network. Originally backed by Larry Page, Cora has come far since its inception.

Related: 

Wisk’s Newest Details on the Cora Air Taxi

California-based Archer Aviation has debuted its inaugural eVTOL air taxi, the Maker. The Maker is set to begin production in 2022, where United Airlines will be one of their first commercial customers. Revealed at a global livestream from Los Angeles, the Maker serves as Archer’s demonstrator prototype aircraft and will serve as the final testbed before commercial production begins. 

The Maker is a two-seater autonomous fixed-wing eVTOL aircraft that can reach speeds of up to 150 mph, powered by 12 total rotors — 6 larger tilt rotors for lift on takeoff and thrust in forward flight, and 6 smaller rotors that are only used during VTOL flight, all attached to struts along the aircraft’s 40-foot wingspan. According to Archer, the Maker’s full-electric motors mean that the aircraft is 100 times quieter than a conventional helicopter. In addition, the aircraft weighs in at 3300 lbs, powered by 6 independant battery packs totaling 75 kWh. With a range of 60 cruising miles, the Maker is expected to serve as an air taxi that provides shuttle service between airports such as Manhattan and JFK in just 10-20 minutes. 

Photograph: Archer Aviation

“Maker’s unveil has been years in the making and marks a pivotal juncture for the eVTOL industry and future of transportation,” said Brett Adcock, co-founder and co-CEO of Archer. “Every day at Archer, we’re working to build the future, and we have never felt closer than we did introducing the world to Maker.”

According to Archer, the Maker’s distributed electric propulsion system provides additional degrees of safety through redundancy, able to suffer one complete battery failure or two rotor failures and still be able to land. The aircraft also only uses 30% of its battery capacity per trip and can rapidly recharge between trips in 10 minutes. At peak efficiency, Archer estimates that each Maker will be able to complete up to 40 flights per day. While full autonomy is still in the works, Archer plans to install both a full-scale autonomous control system connected to a 13-inch touchscreen display as well as the option for a manual control system in the final version of the aircraft, which will also have space for a pilot and 4 passengers. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Trent Palmer (@trentonpalmer)

The first set of flight tests are expected to be completed sometime in the fourth quarter of this year, with manufacturing of the final aircraft to commence in 2022. United Airlines will be one of the first customers, with plans to buy up to  $1 billion worth of the upcoming eVTOLs as a way to diminish its carbon footprint.

“Archer has a big, bold company vision and our approach to this milestone moment had to match that,” said Louise Bristow, who leads Marketing and Communications for Archer and assembled the creative team. “We wanted to deliver an experience that went beyond the conventions of normal product launches and to bring together a unique group of partners to create something truly immersive for our audience.”

Photograph: Archer Aviation

Why it’s important: Archer adds on to their increasing momentum with the reveal of the Maker. With their recent merger with Atlas Crest Investment Corporation as well as United Airlines’ large-scale order, Archer Aviation is in an excellent financial standing in preparation for their expected commercial launch in 2024. 

Source // GlobalNewswire

Eve, the eVTOL project of the EmbraerX urban air mobility initiative, has officially announced a partnership with Ascent, an urban air mobility ecosystem developer, to grow aerial mobility networks in the Asia-Pacific markets.

The EmbraerX ‘Eve’ eVTOL aircraft, which is already being prototyped.

EmbraerX initially announced its unnamed eVTOL project at Uber Elevate 2018, and has since dubbed the aircraft and the program, ‘Eve’. The aircraft’s design is impressive and professional, with 8 vertical lift propellers, 2 pusher propellers, and room for 4 passengers plus a pilot. Dedicated thought was given to the aircraft’s aerodynamic design and cabin, giving it a fixed wing to increase range in forward flight, and an accessible and spacious cabin for passengers.

Ascent meanwhile is a dedicated developer of of aerial mobility technology on the infrastructure and customer side, already offering affordable by-the-seat bookings and operations management for traditional helicopter air taxis. Ascent’s goal is to use new technologies to make cities more connected by moving people seamlessly by air, using ‘helicopters today and eVTOLs in the future’. With a similar business model to BLADE Urban Air Mobility, Ascent recently launched helicopter air taxi services both in Thailand and in the Philippines.

Ascent Founders Darren Tng and Lionel Sinai-Sinelnikoff pose with one of the helicopters in their fleet.

According to a recent press release, the partnership between Ascent and Eve aims the progressive integration of Eve eVTOLs into Ascent’s growing technology platform, which offers air taxi, cargo and air medical services in the Asia-Pacific region. Ascent currently maintains a database of air operator partners that are dedicated to UAM operations throughout Thailand and the Philippines, and is set to expand its presence in the region. Additionally, both EmbraerX and Ascent expect that Eve´s Urban Air Traffic Management (UATM) services will be fully integrated into Ascent technology to ensure secure and scalable operations.

Said Lionel Sinai-Sinelnikoff, Founder & CEO of Ascent, “This partnership with Eve is a leap forward for Ascent toward achieving our ambition to democratize sustainable urban air mobility. Joining forces with Eve, and by extension counting with the active support from the Embraer Group, will enable us to accelerate our development for a larger impact, secure the entry of market-fit all-electric aircraft, and  provide safe and secure operations at scale thanks to urban air traffic management integration”

Said Andre Stein, President & CEO of Eve Urban Air Mobility, “We are pleased to announce this partnership with Ascent as it aligns with our strategy to develop the urban air mobility ecosystem through collaborative efforts and to be a truly global player. Armed with Ascent’s data and platform, we will be well positioned to enter into the Asia Pacific market. On our end, we are committed to supporting Ascent’s growth and its ambition to democratize air mobility.”

Why it’s important: This announcement is yet another representation of the industry’s speedy shift of focus from vehicle creation to commercial operations development. As eVTOL developers the world over are moving closer to certifying their aircraft for commercial flight, some of these companies, such as EmbraerX, are turning to local operators and brokers like BLADE and Ascent to assist in market entry. As the world approaches a full launch of aerial mobility services, keep an eye on these evolving companies as they continue to develop business structures and partnerships that will enable success.

Source // EmbraerX, Ascent

Related: 

• Ascent Urban Air Mobility Announces Launch in Thailand
• Joby Aviation Announces Infrastructure Partnership With Largest Mobility Hub Operator in North America
• BLADE Announces Deal for Operator’s Order of up to 20 BETA EVA’s

Alauda Aeronautics has completed its first flight of its EXA purpose-built racing eVTOL vehicle. In the summer of 2019 entrepreneur Matthew Pearson stated his ambition to create the world’s first racing series for electric flying cars. His mission was informed by the role racing historically played in accelerating the development of both ground and air mobility.

Today, Pearson and his team proudly echo the legacies of automotive and aviation pioneers like Enzo Ferrari, Karl Benz, John Alcock and Arthur Brown in making history through the first flights of a full-scale electric flying racing car, the remotely-piloted Alauda Mk3.

These historic first flights have taken place at undisclosed test locations in the deserts of South Australia under the observation of Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). Throughout the development process, the Alauda team has worked with the regulator to ensure compliance to all required procedures while developing robust safety protocols. The successful execution of these flights means that uncrewed electric flying car Grand Prixs will take place in 2021 at three soon-to-be-revealed international locations.

These races will see elite pilots drawn from aviation, motorsport and eSports backgrounds to remotely pilot the world’s only racing electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) craft. These pilots will remotely control their Speeders in races across electronically governed, Augmented Reality enabled sky-tracks. Audiences will watch via digital streams that show the full dynamic potential of vehicles that have greater thrust-to-weight ratio than a F15 fighter jet.

These races will rapidly hasten the arrival of eVTOL advanced air mobility craft. This technology, predicted by Morgan Stanley to be worth $1.5 trillion by 2040 is already finding potent applications in air logistics and remote medical care and has the potential to liberate cities from congestion though clean-air passenger applications like air taxis.

“EXA delivers on the promise of a future first shown in science fiction. We are proud to introduce a sport that redefines what humans and machines can achieve together. These historic first flights are just the start and we are all excited to begin a momentous new chapter in motorsport’s rich legacy.” – Matthew Pearson, Founder, Airspeeder and Alauda Aeronautics.

Alauda Aeronautics will continue to design, test, and build the racing vehicle which participate in Airspeeder racing events. Airspeeder EXA Series, previously mentioned, will begin races as early as this year, with crewed races coming in 2022.

Why it matters: By creating the world’s first racing series for electric flying cars, Alauda Aeronautics takes a leadership position in this generation’s defining mobility revolution. It does this by providing a place and a space to rapidly accelerate the development of the key safety, performance and dynamics technologies that will underpin the growth of eVTOL transportation.

Source: Alauda Aeronautics Press Release