Boeing Passenger Air Vehicle (PAV)
Quick Summary
The Boeing Passenger Air Vehicle is a venture originally headed by John Langford, who's company Aurora Flight Sciences was acquired by Boeing in November of 2017 (AFS is now a subsidiary of Boeing's NeXt technology ventures arm). The Boeing PAV is similar in design to the Kitty Hawk Cora, as it utilizes vertical lift propellors for takeoff and landing and transitions to forward flight using a single pusher propellor. The first flight of the PAV was on January 23rd, 2019.
Boeing NeXt
Stage of Development
Preliminary Design
Prototype Build
Flight Testing
Certification
Commercially Operating
Technical Details
Aircraft Type: Winged VTOL
Powerplant: All-electric
Range: 50 miles
Top Speed: Undisclosed
Propeller Configuration: 8 lifting rotors, 1 pusher propeller
Passenger/Payload Capacity: Two-seater
Autonomy Level: Autonomous
Dimensions: 30 feet wingspan, 28ft length
Other Information:
Infrastructure:
- Aurora’s eVTOL aircraft will provide on-demand transportation to minimize long commutes due to heavy traffic and urbanization in populated areas.
- The infrastructure plan includes urban “vertiports” for passenger boarding and vehicle servicing.
- eVTOL aircraft will operate a “hub-to-hub” service between designated vertiports.
- The first test bed flights are scheduled to begin in 2020 in Dallas, Texas, USA and Dubai, The United Arab Emirates.
Operational Overview:
- The eVTOL aircraft includes eight lift rotors for vertical takeoff and cruise propeller and wing to transition to high-speed forward cruise.
- At destination hub, the aircraft transitions back to rotor-borne flight for vertical landing.
- Fully electric operation decreases or eliminates emissions and noise pollution for a quieter flight.
- While initially operated with a safety pilot, the eVTOL aircraft is designed for fully autonomous operations.
- The flight capability for eVTOL aircraft is three times more efficient than a multi-copter aircraft.
Capabilities:
- The eVTOL will be used for short-haul transport of passengers or cargo.
- Current configuration allows for two passengers including the pilot plus luggage.
- Offerings will include specific configuration options to address mission requirements for civil and military operations.
Our Take on Boeing NeXt and Aurora
Aurora Flight Sciences is unique - it is a medium size company, with around 470 employees, and is now a Boeing subsidiary under the Boeing NeXt technology ventures arm. Furthermore, Aurora has completed a number of other theoretical and physical design projects, including autonomous, novel flight control, and novel configuration - all components that require mastery and experience in to successfully design a competitive eVTOL. The first test of the full scale prototype was on January 23rd, 2019 in Manassa, VA.
References
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