Category: Vehicles/Manufactures
Dufour’s Vision for Regional Air Mobility
Dufour Aerospace, based near the Swiss Alps, believes in Regional Air Mobility as opposed to Urban Air Mobility. Since 2015, Dufour Aerospace has worked on its vision for eVTOL mobility. It started with successful flights of the aEro1 electric airplane and is now working on building the prototype aEro2, a two-seater tilt-wing hybrid eVTOL capable of travel up to 800km. Dufour Aerospace believes...

Dufour’s Vision for Regional Air Mobility

Dufour Aerospace, based near the Swiss Alps, believes in Regional Air Mobility as opposed to Urban Air Mobility.
Since 2015, Dufour Aerospace has worked on its vision for eVTOL mobility. It started with successful flights of the aEro1 electric airplane and is now working on building the prototype aEro2, a two-seater tilt-wing hybrid eVTOL capable of travel up to 800km.
Dufour Aerospace believes that while short-distance urban air vehicles like the Volocopter will one day emerge, longer distance ‘regional’ VTOL trips between cities rather within them are more imminent due to their higher time-saving potential.

A potential route for Dufour’s aEro2
For trips that would take several hours by car, many travelers prefer to fly by airplane. However, according to Dufour, the overhead time added to the trip by getting to and through the airport highly diminishes the time saved by flying. Dufour envisions that it’s ‘aEero3’ hybrid eVTOL could provide closer and quicker point-to-point travel between these destinations. For example, the overhead time for many airports is 60 minutes, while the overhead time for vehicles like the aEro3 could be as little as 30 minutes. See this visualized by Dufour below:

Dufour’s comparison between cars, traditional airplanes, and eVTOLs like the aEro3.
While traditional airplanes can fly faster than the aEro3, the time overhead time travelers could save by using regional eVTOLs often makes them more desirable. Dufour demonstrates this by creating a map showing the quickest total transit times to MIT from places in the Boston and Washington D.C areas and MIT:

Dufour’s map of fastest transit times to MIT by mode of transportation.
Dufour also provided the below analysis for transit times comparing the three transportation modes by distance. This graph was created using a database of door-to-door transit times between destinations in the Washington D.C and Boston area in the U.S:
For the next ten years, Dufour feels that mid-range journeys of 25km to 800km are where hybrid (not pure electric) eVTOLs can deliver the most value. According to Dufour, “significant time savings over cars will not be easy to achieve with eVTOLs within cities because, while they are much faster, their passengers will need to use heliports to embark and disembark.”
Dufour was recently selected as one of the Bilan top 50 startups in 2019. Read more about this latest achievement here.
Why it’s important: While Dufour understands the appeal to skip over traffic by air, it has chosen to look at where eVTOL can save travelers the most time. Dufour believes that this is in journeys between 25 and 800km. The greatest takeaway from its recent study is that high overall time savings vs other modes of transportation is a highly important element to VTOL success.
Test Ride EHang’s Autonomous Air Vehicle This April
The Chinese Original Equipment Manufacturer, EHang, is one of the many companies progressing the urban air mobility industry as the idea of autonomous air taxis approaches reality. However, “innovation requires acceptance”. That is why EHang has joined a strategic partnership with FACC, the Austrian aviation company, and ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4. ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4 is a company with a mission to promote...

Test Ride EHang’s Autonomous Air Vehicle This April

The Chinese Original Equipment Manufacturer, EHang, is one of the many companies progressing the urban air mobility industry as the idea of autonomous air taxis approaches reality. However, “innovation requires acceptance”. That is why EHang has joined a strategic partnership with FACC, the Austrian aviation company, and ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4.
ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4 is a company with a mission to promote the mobility systems of the future. Through a media platform, they have cultivated an ecosystem to address the “future of mobility issues” and have organized a festival around this same idea. “The 4GAMECHANGERS Festival 2019 represents the starting gun for a broad media treatment in information, discussion, and docutainment formats on several broadcasters and on partner media.” At the Festival from April 9-11, attendees will have the chance to take a ride in EHang’s autonomous air vehicle for the first time.

EHang’s partnership with composites manufacturer FACC will optimize the EHang 184 for production.
ProSiebanSat, FACC, and EHANG plan to take their autonomous air vehicle (AAV) to series production in Austria. Within the partnership, EHang is the “inventor and expert for all questions having to do with autonomous flying, especially with respect to connectivity and software solutions”, according to a recent press release. The triad’s goal is to advance and accelerate the future of air urban air mobility, and they “view the project as a chance for Austria and Europe as a whole to position themselves as pioneers”. By expediting the creation of a test area and coordinating with politicians and aviation authorities, the group hopes to tackle the challenge of regulation.

For technical specifications on EHang’s AAV, visit the Hangar.
While the regulatory hurdles are high, ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4 has created www.urban-air-mobility.io as a platform to increase the accessibility and public exposure of these challenges, as well as the progress that is being made to address them. Also, EHang CEO Mr. Huazhi HU states that “given stable 5G infrastructures, autonomous flying will soon be reality, offering customers a new dimension of convenience.” Interestingly, it is likely that autonomous flying vehicles will be in service even before commercialized autonomous cars due to the simplicity of aerial transit route design.
Why it’s important: EHang, FACC, and ProSiebenSat.1 PULS 4 have detailed a plan to produce their AAV in Austria, while also encouraging other urban air mobility companies by providing a path for regulation and public acceptance. Additionally, the GAMECHANGERS Festival will provide the first public opportunity to ride in an autonomous air vehicle slated for commercialization. These milestones mark great advancement in the urban aviation industry as a whole.
CityAirbus Unmanned Air Taxi to Take Flight This Month
Alongside the Vahana and Pop.Up Next, Airbus is also taking on the endeavor of building the CityAirbus, an unmanned air taxi currently being prototyped in Donauworth, Germany. Since 2016, Airbus has been testing components and systems of the CityAirbus in order to validate its design and eventually fly a full-scale model. Airbus describes their vehicle as “a multi-passenger, self-piloted electric...

CityAirbus Unmanned Air Taxi to Take Flight This Month

Alongside the Vahana and Pop.Up Next, Airbus is also taking on the endeavor of building the CityAirbus, an unmanned air taxi currently being prototyped in Donauworth, Germany. Since 2016, Airbus has been testing components and systems of the CityAirbus in order to validate its design and eventually fly a full-scale model.
Airbus describes their vehicle as “a multi-passenger, self-piloted electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) demonstrator designed for ubran air mobility with cost efficiency, high-volume production and a low environmental footprint in mind.” The company has taken a slower, more meticulous approach to the manufacturing and sub-scale testing of the vehicle due to its complexity and in hope that the design can be feasible for full-scale production in the near future. First flight of the prototype CityAirbus vehicle was originally planned for the end of 2018, but has since been postponed to some time in the upcoming weeks.
The 4 pairs of contra-rotating propellors, each 2.8m (9ft 2in) in diameter, are powered by 8 specially designed Siemens SP200D (100kW operating power, direct-drive) drivetrains with exceptional torque to weight ratio. The result is a cruising speed of 120 km/h while on flying with the autonomous system on fixed routes. According to Marius Bebesel, head of urban air mobility at Airbus, they are focused on perfecting the architecture and safety systems with the unmanned CityAirbus first, but plan to possibly include the option for piloted flight. Though, it will be initially operated by a pilot to “ease certification and public acceptance, paving the way to future fully-autonomous operations.”
The propulsion system is designed for a max capacity of “four passengers over congested megacities to important destinations such as airports or train stations in a fast, affordable and environmentally friendly way. The innovative four-ducted propeller configuration significantly contributes to safety and low acoustic footprint,” according to Airbus. Meanwhile, Airbus is still perfecting its design with trade studies, such as the investigation of switching from wood to composite propellors, in order to be confident in the design as a high-volume production vehicle.

For more technical specifications of the CityAirbus, visit the Hangar.
Why its important: Airbus is showing a strong commitment to the urban air mobility industry by investing in a third concept design. The specifications of the CityAirbus are comparable to the vehicles of other leading companies, possibly demonstrating the convergence on an efficient design that will best fulfill the need this industry is attempting to address. The thorough design and testing process of the CityAirbus will be put to the test in the upcoming few weeks, as it first attempts to depart the ground.
Goodyear’s Aero – An Ideal Tire for Hovercars
Goodyear came out with a new concept tire that could help merge travel through road and the air. The Aero is modeled similarly to a VTOL aircraft (Vertical Take-Off and Landing), utilizing the spokes in the tire as propellor blades during flight. Ideally, this would allow a car to take off in flight from a stable surface with no issues....

Goodyear’s Aero – An Ideal Tire for Hovercars


Named the “Aero”, the conceptual model was revealed at the 2019 Geneva International Motor Show.
Goodyear came out with a new concept tire that could help merge travel through road and the air. The Aero is modeled similarly to a VTOL aircraft (Vertical Take-Off and Landing), utilizing the spokes in the tire as propellor blades during flight. Ideally, this would allow a car to take off in flight from a stable surface with no issues.

The Aero is a blend between a tire and a rotor, resulting in a unique design that can handle both the stresses of pavement and still be able to propel a car through the air as well.
The tire is designed in such a way that it is flexible enough to support driving on the road, while still being able to act as propellors in flight. To ensure that the tire can achieve this while dampening the effects of driving on roads, the design is non-pneumatic, which means that it does not rely on air pressure to provide stability and support for the vehicle’s weight. Additionally, magnetic forces would provide frictionless propulsion and create the high rotating speeds needed to put the car in the air when the wheels are tilted upward. The Aero additionally includes optical sensors and artificial intelligence to monitor the state of the tire and ‘communicate’ with the car about road conditions and the state of the tire.
Goodyear was firm in their assertion that the Aero is a conceptual design, and far from being ready for implementation. However, Goodyear hopes that the Aero can start a discussion on the future development of tires and transportation. According to Chris Helsel, Goodyear’s chief technology officer, “With mobility companies looking to the sky for the answer to the challenges of urban transport and congestion, our work on advanced tire architectures and materials led us to imagine a wheel that could serve both as a traditional tire on the road and as a propulsion system in the sky.”
Why it’s important: Goodyear’s Aero raises a discussion about the future of tires when daily transportation no longer takes place solely on roads. When the next innovation in the transportation industry occurs, it will likely be influenced by the discussions on hybrid technologies that are being explored today.
Sources // Motor Authority, CNN, NBC News
PAL-V Reveals the ‘Liberty Pioneer’
With production scheduled to begin next year, PAL-V revealed a special edition of its ‘Liberty’ flying car earlier this week at the Geneva Motor Show. According to PAL-V, the new ‘Liberty Pioneer’, will be first out for delivery with a production run of only 90 units. This special version of the original PAL-V Liberty will have tailor-made leather interior, carbon materials,...

PAL-V Reveals the ‘Liberty Pioneer’

With production scheduled to begin next year, PAL-V revealed a special edition of its ‘Liberty’ flying car earlier this week at the Geneva Motor Show.

The PAL-V Liberty is part gyro-plane and part three-wheeled car. Anyone with a drivers license can drive the PAL-V on the ground, but a pilot’s license is required for flight. PAL-V showed off the base model of its flying car last year. Learn more about the PAL-V’s specs.
According to PAL-V, the new ‘Liberty Pioneer’, will be first out for delivery with a production run of only 90 units. This special version of the original PAL-V Liberty will have tailor-made leather interior, carbon materials, and two-tone coloring, as well as some extra performance features. Delivery is scheduled for 2020.

Said PAL-V Chief engineer Mike Stekelenburg: “The gyroplane principle not only provides us with a safe and easy-to-operate flying car but it also enables us to make it compact and within existing regulations, which is the most important factor to build a useable flying car.” The PAL-V Liberty requires about 1,000 feet of runway to take-off, 98ft to land, and has a range of about three hundred miles.
PAL-V is currently testing its production-ready aircraft with the European Aviation Safety Agency for certification as a small rotorcraft. Around 150 flight trials are required and will occur this year. As of mid-2018, PAL-V has received about 50 pre-orders for the vehicle.
Why it’s important: While the PAL-V Liberty is more recreational aircraft than built for urban air mobility, the vehicle has had to go through many of the same certification and production details that new eVTOL aircraft are experiencing. By ‘normalizing’ the experience of personal flight, PAL-V paves the way more new types of personal aircraft.
Sources // FlightGlobal, New Atlas.
Blainjett Aviation Surfaces with an Innovative Rotary Wing Design
Startup company Blainjett Aviation has released a new breakthrough for the field of rotary-wing aviation. Their new conceptual design, termed “dynamic variable pitch”, is an innovative upgrade to propeller technologies that looks to change the way new rotary-wing aircraft are designed. The dynamic variable pitch technology will automatically stabilize and regulate propellers or rotors to improve the overall speed and...

Blainjett Aviation Surfaces with an Innovative Rotary Wing Design

Startup company Blainjett Aviation has released a new breakthrough for the field of rotary-wing aviation.

Blainjett Aviation’s dynamic-variable-pitch technology
Their new conceptual design, termed “dynamic variable pitch”, is an innovative upgrade to propeller technologies that looks to change the way new rotary-wing aircraft are designed. The dynamic variable pitch technology will automatically stabilize and regulate propellers or rotors to improve the overall speed and efficiency. By attaching a flexible cam to the propeller, Blainjett has found a method to automatically monitor the propeller’s airflow and orientation.

The mechanics of a fixed rotor
One of the largest obstacles to the breaking past the limits of helicopter flight is thrust vectoring, or the ability of an aircraft to effectively control the direction of its thrust from a motor or engine. The ability to do so can directly impact the aircraft’s limitations in efficiency regarding manipulation of its own altitude and angular velocity. Dissymmetry of lift is another problem facing conventional rotary-wing aircraft, where the rotation of the blades will cause uneven amounts of lift and reduce the stability of the aircraft in forward flight. This is one of the key limiting factors in a rotary-wing aircraft’s top speed.
Through this cam, these obstacles can be mitigated. The cam can use the propellers to automatically guide the airflow, allowing for quadcopters to achieve higher speeds at a more efficient pace, and be able to takeoff, land, and maneuver all without tilting the rotors or main body of the aircraft. Additionally, Blainjett’s proof of concept prototype provided data that suggest that the countering of dissymmetry of lift can be improved by 75%, and projected up to 125% in future testing.
Blainjett Aviation hopes that with the help of their new technology, they can not only attract investors in the UAV and manned VTOL markets, but aid in creating the designs of radical new aircraft as well.
Why it’s important: Blainjett Aviation’s dynamic-variable-pitch technology creates potential for vast improvements in efficiency and developments in rotary-wing aircraft. Using the integrated cam, Blainjett’s tech can automatically monitor and adjust any problems from the rotor. Dynamic-variable-pitch provides Blainjett Aviation the opportunity to create huge developments in the rotary-wing industry.
Sources // AviationPros, Blainjett Aviation, ScienceDirect
ASX and Transcend Air Will Use VerdeGo Propulsion Systems
Earlier this year, both ASX (formerly known as Aerospace X) and Transcend Air announced that they will partner with VerdeGo to develop their vehicle’s propulsion systems. Until September of last year, VerdeGo had planned to make its own VTOL aircraft. The company then pivoted to providing IDEP (integrated distributed electric propulsion) systems to other aircraft makers. Since then, it has successfully partnered...

ASX and Transcend Air Will Use VerdeGo Propulsion Systems

Earlier this year, both ASX (formerly known as Aerospace X) and Transcend Air announced that they will partner with VerdeGo to develop their vehicle’s propulsion systems.

A visual of VerdeGo Aero’s IDEP system.
Until September of last year, VerdeGo had planned to make its own VTOL aircraft. The company then pivoted to providing IDEP (integrated distributed electric propulsion) systems to other aircraft makers. Since then, it has successfully partnered with both ASX and Transcend Air.
“VerdeGo Aero’s IDEP systems enable forward-thinking aircraft manufacturers such as ASX MOBi-One to apply electric propulsion options to high-performance VTOL aircraft. ASX’s adoption of our first generation hybrid IDEP platform will smooth the path to a fully battery electric VTOL solution, once those options become viable”–Eric Bartsch, COO of VerdeGo Aero.

The ASX MOBi-One aircraft
VerdeGo was co-founded by none other than Erik Lindbergh, grandson of Charles Lindberg, who made history with the world’s first solo transatlantic flight in 1927. VerdeGo made the transition from making its own eVTOL to providing propulsion systems upon seeing a need in the market for a company purely focused on propulsion.

VerdeGo Aero’s original PAT200 design
With VerdeGo’s technology, ASX hopes to ensure that it will have a “clear roadmap of propulsion variants of the MOBi well into the future”. Similar to ASX, Transcend Air hopes that VerdeGo will help the company to “enable a new family of aircraft that deliver a variety of mission capabilities, with increased efficiency and sustainability.” VerdeGo has also partnered another aspiring VTOL developer, Seyer Industries.

Transcend Air’s Vy400 aircraft
Both ASX and Transcend Air are focused on making larger-size eVTOls for both intracity and intercity travel. Additional information on both companies can be found on TransportUP’s hangar page.
Why it’s important: VerdeGo Aero is quickly becoming one of the world’s leading producers/designers of propulsion systems for eVTOLs. While many larger companies are building their propulsion systems in-house, VerdeGo allows for developing companies to outsource this design work, lowering barriers to entry for new companies.
Souces // Press Release Distribution, Transcend Air, VerdeGo Aero, ASX.
Watch Airbus Vahana’s 50th Test Flight
In Vahana’s latest test flight, the vehicle exhibits the capabilities of its tilting wing, transitioning from vertical take-off to horizontal flight. The above video comes from Zach Lovering, project executive for Vahana at A³. The Vahana takes off vertically, tilts its wings for transition into horizontal flight, stops, turns around, and lands. The aircraft flies for 7 minutes at speeds up to 57mph,...

Watch Airbus Vahana’s 50th Test Flight

In Vahana’s latest test flight, the vehicle exhibits the capabilities of its tilting wing, transitioning from vertical take-off to horizontal flight.
The above video comes from Zach Lovering, project executive for Vahana at A³. The Vahana takes off vertically, tilts its wings for transition into horizontal flight, stops, turns around, and lands. The aircraft flies for 7 minutes at speeds up to 57mph, and altitudes of up to 210 feet.
In a recent Vahana blog post, Lovering mentions that these flights are for testing flight controls, navigation, failure detection, and noise mitigation. While the full-scale model has flown 50 test flights, the sub-scale version has flown 1,277 flights. The full-scale version made its first test flight on January 31st, 2018.

Vahana Alpha Two on the Pendleton, Oregon UAS runway, February 2019.
In the last few months, many top aircraft manufacturers have released vehicle footage to the public. Most recently Boeing showed its ‘Personal Air Vehicle’ (developed in collaboration Boeing’s subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences) taking off, hovering, and landing autonomously. Bell Helicopter brought the ‘Nexus Air Taxi’ to CES 2019 last month, where fans got the chance to sit in the vehicle itself.
Airbus has made progress in of many aspects of Urban Air Mobility, having recently released the blueprint for Airbus Altiscope, an airspace management system, and a small-scale prototype of its Pop.Up Next vehicle in collaboration with Audi. While it’s yet unclear whether Airbus will pursue one of these avenues or all of them, the company has certainly staked its claim on air taxis with the Vahana’s latest test video.

The Airbus Altiscope vision for the future of urban air mobility
Why it’s important: With the release of the latest Vahana flight video featuring the aircraft in flight for 7 mins at speeds up to 57mph, Airbus marks its place among the recent flood of prototype videos released by major companies like Boeing and Bell Helicopter. The video features the Vahana transitioning from vertical to horizontal flight, which Boeing has named as, ‘typically the most significant engineering challenge for any high-speed VTOL aircraft’.
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Source // Airbus Vahana Blog, Boeing Technology Blog
Beta Technologies Exits Stealth Mode
Kyle Clark, Founder of Beta Technologies, has been quietly accumulating top talent from GE, Scaled Composites, Lord/Microstrain, Aurora Flight Sciences and other companies on the cutting-edge of aviation technology to develop and test the Ava XC prototype aircraft. Until an undisclosed amount of funding was received from United Therapeutics last year, Beta had been in “stealth mode” for almost two...

Beta Technologies Exits Stealth Mode

Kyle Clark, Founder of Beta Technologies, has been quietly accumulating top talent from GE, Scaled Composites, Lord/Microstrain, Aurora Flight Sciences and other companies on the cutting-edge of aviation technology to develop and test the Ava XC prototype aircraft. Until an undisclosed amount of funding was received from United Therapeutics last year, Beta had been in “stealth mode” for almost two years, prioritizing rapid prototyping and well over 170 test flights above a media presence.

Martine Rothblatt, CEO of United Therapeutics Image: UCLA Newsroom
Beta Technologies teamed with United Therapeutics, a biotechnology company founded by Martine Rothblatt, to transport organs. The company, however, has additional goals beyond just emergency response. In a recent interview, Kyle explained how Beta envisions other uses for its eVTOL aircraft, beginning with an “aircraft that can fly within the current national airspace.” Beta is poised to first have a special R&D experimental airworthiness certificate for their vehicle, and eventually shape the way FAA regulatory changes are made to accommodate eVTOLs by gaining confidence with reliable and safe flight testing, according to Clark.
Ava XC is a fixed-wing eVTOL with eight propellers on 90-degree tilting nacelles which are powered by two 124 kWh lithium-ion battery packs. At first glance, Ava XC does not look too much different than a traditional winged aircraft, but Beta Technologies’ electric propulsion and battery-storage technologies are the driving force behind the design. For more about Ava XC and a video of the prototype during transition envelope testing, visit the Hangar.

Image: VTOL Investor
What differentiates Beta Technologies from many other eVTOL OEMs is their pursuit to also install charging stations at specific locations with “solar- and grid-powered recharging pad technology”. Clark claims that the technology will provide “frequency regulation (short term power) and voltage management” and will use reclaimed aircraft batteries to cut costs and recycle materials. So far, Beta has already built a megawatt-scale recharging pad in Vermont and has plans for 50 more across the East coast for ancillary grid and recharging services.
Why it’s important: Later this year, Beta Technologies plans to debut its production aircraft, a highly anticipated milestone for the company. Kyle Clark’s experience in power electronics could bode well for Beta’s future success. Further, Beta’s investment in the development of high-performance charging infrastructure has the potential to both give the company a long-term competitive edge and advance the electric aviation industry as a whole.
EHANG is Authorized to Test its Passenger Autonomous Air Vehicle
From EHANG’s Latest Press Release CAAC Issues Guidance on UAV Airworthiness Certification On January 23rd, 2019, the Airworthiness Department of Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) issued the Guidance on UAV Airworthiness Certification based on Operational Risks, aiming at establishing a risk-based UAV airworthiness management system by the end of 2019. A total of five Chinese UAV companies were authorized...

EHANG is Authorized to Test its Passenger Autonomous Air Vehicle

From EHANG’s Latest Press Release
CAAC Issues Guidance on UAV Airworthiness Certification
On January 23rd, 2019, the Airworthiness Department of Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) issued the Guidance on UAV Airworthiness Certification based on Operational Risks, aiming at establishing a risk-based UAV airworthiness management system by the end of 2019. A total of five Chinese UAV companies were authorized as pilots to initiate and develop different UAV programs in exploring airworthiness standards and certification methods for UAVs for transporting cargos, inspecting powerlines and carrying passengers. EHANG is a member of the CAAC specialized management group for civil UAVs, and also China’s first company on the world’s leading program for the piloting and testing of the cutting-edge passenger Autonomous Aerial Vehicles (AAV).
EHANG is now one of a few AAV manufacturers involved in this pilot program. According to EHANG, the program is targeting completion at the end of 2019.
In recent years the industry of civil UAVs has witnessed rapid growth in China. Beyond just aerial filming, the connection with 4G/5G network further expands various “UAV+” applications including logistics, smart city management, emergency rescue, urban air mobility, etc. Two days before the Guidance release on January 21st, China’s President Xi Jinping specifically emphasized the importance of accelerating the legislation process for UAV industry on the provincial and ministerial seminars.
According to the Guidance, CAAC aimed to build up China’s UAV airworthiness certification management with Chinese characteristics guided by three principles:
- Exploring a certification method by closely orchestrating hierarchical certifications with different levels of operational risks.
- Exploring a certification process by extracting CAAC certification standards and regulations from industrial standards.
- Exploring a certification mode with a more tolerant, open and service-oriented mind by encouraging UAV companies to jointly participate the airworthiness management through integrated information system.
As long as UAV companies establish a qualified airworthiness system and its UAV products have met airworthiness standards, CAAC will issue the airworthiness certificate.
Meanwhile, the Guidance disclosed that China’s UAV airworthiness management system based on operational risks is to be established preliminarily by the end of 2019. The further technology development and business mode innovation promise the ultimate trend of incorporating UAVs into the current civil aviation system. In the near future, it is expected by CAAC that the UAV industry will eventually be on a par with the general aviation industry, or even replace some applications of current general aviation aircraft in certain fields.
As the major program with CAAC authority attentions, EHANGS’s proprietarily-developed AAVs have the potential to influence the future of urban air mobility.
The program will deploying in Guangzhou and Taizhou, a seaside city in Zhejiang Province in China, according to EHANG. Further, as the authorized pilot company, EHANG is able to set several pilot sites in other places in China. As test sites transfer to full-time operations centers, new test sites in different cities of China will be added to expand the transportation network.
“EHANG AAVs witness a major innovation and breakthrough of China’s UAV airworthiness management,” said HU Huazhi, EHANG Founder & CEO, “The urban air mobility that EHANG AAVs have explored and pioneered persistently is no longer a future concept, it is a to-be realized ‘China Innovation’. China and EHANG have already become the forerunners in establishing a digitalized air eco-system with the innovative applications of urban air mobility, aerial logistics, smart city management, aerial media and other commercial solutions.”
Why it’s important: EHANG’s participation in this pilot program will afford the opportunity for integration with the CAAC and an early look at a test data that regulators may use as either a benchmark or a lesson to be learned for future programs. Additionally, the pilot program hosted by the CAAC is one of the first of its kind for eVTOL’s, and could also aid the industry as an early look toward the sustaining paths to certification, much as EASA is considering application of their Special Conditions for eVTOL Certification.
Uber Elevate Sees Potential Partner in Jaunt Air Mobility
Kaydon Stanzione, a New Jersey engineer and entrepreneur, and the founder of Jaunt Air Mobility, has been quietly developing his company with little to no media presence. This has been a trend with other rising eVTOL companies such as Beta Technologies, where focus has been placed almost exclusively on development, for a leaner – and possibly quicker – road to...

Uber Elevate Sees Potential Partner in Jaunt Air Mobility

Kaydon Stanzione, a New Jersey engineer and entrepreneur, and the founder of Jaunt Air Mobility, has been quietly developing his company with little to no media presence. This has been a trend with other rising eVTOL companies such as Beta Technologies, where focus has been placed almost exclusively on development, for a leaner – and possibly quicker – road to their goal.
For Jaunt Air Mobility, their goal is to “couple the speed, range and efficiency of an airplane with the vertical takeoff and landing capability of a helicopter along with the unparalleled safety of a high inertia rotor.” To do this, Jaunt has already acquired Carter Aviation Technologies, “aerospace research and development firm that developed and demonstrated Slowed-Rotor/Compound (SR/C™) technology”. Carter has been around since its founding in 1994, and has since flown demonstrators such as the Carter Copter and Passenger Air Vehicle (PAV), which can be seen in the video below.
Carter Aviation Technologies, and their new-founded collaboration with Jaunt Air Mobility, has caught the eye of Mark Moore, director of engineering at Uber Elevate. Currently, Uber Elevate has partnered with 5 companies which are all developing their take on fixed-wing electric or hybrid-electric aircraft with distributed propulsion and control systems. Jaunt Air Mobility could be the sixth company to partner with Uber Elevate given if it receives venture capital funding, and would be the first of the partners to incorporate Slowed-Rotor/Compound technology in their design.
Additionally, since the Jaunt aircraft design combines that of a helicopter and a traditional fixed-wing aircraft, it employs the use of autorotation, which is what makes helicopters safe to fly. The company touts this as an advantage of its aircraft because the air pushing through the large, horizontal rotor ideally produces enough lift to safely land the vehicle. This contrasts other eVTOL designs which would rely on safety mechanisms such as parachutes if the aircraft were to require an rapid-descent landing.

Carter Copter, a Carter Aviation Technologies demonstrator
Why its important: Jaunt Air Mobility’s hybrid design approach includes important safety features of a high inertia rotor which could enable the aircraft to be a widespread commercially viable option. Since Uber Elevate would likely be transporting high volumes of passengers daily, they would need to prove both to the passengers and regulatory agencies that the vehicles they are operating are safe and have reliable safety measures. This, coupled with receiving venture capital funding, could make Jaunt a viable partner for Uber Elevate in the near future.
Source // CleanTechnica, Nicolas Zart
Urban Air Mobility – The Quest for the Right Shape*
This article originally appeared on LinkedIn, authored by Mehmet Emre YAZICI. * The word “shape” is freely used to describe the external configuration of the aircraft. Why Airframe Shape is Important? For the first time in known history, humankind is this close to make the “flying-car” a reality. Today, 70+ manufacturers worldwide, (including; Airbus, Bell, Boeing, Embraer, Rolls-Royce, Toyota, Volvo, etc.) are seriously involved...

Urban Air Mobility – The Quest for the Right Shape*

This article originally appeared on LinkedIn, authored by Mehmet Emre YAZICI.
* The word “shape” is freely used to describe the external configuration of the aircraft.
Why Airframe Shape is Important?
For the first time in known history, humankind is this close to make the “flying-car” a reality. Today, 70+ manufacturers worldwide, (including; Airbus, Bell, Boeing, Embraer, Rolls-Royce, Toyota, Volvo, etc.) are seriously involved in developing some form of an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle. As of September 2018, total global investment volume has exceeded $1 billion. According to The Electric VTOL News™, since 2011 some 140 different eVTOL projects based on four basic configurations, have been announced. While wingless multi-copterconfiguration is the most favored (45%), electric helicopters are not-so-popular (3%).
There obviously are major difficulties ahead. Although, the prioritization differs from person to person, I believe that the top three are; regulatory issues, environmental effects (mostly noise) and public acceptance (due to security and privacy concerns). So, configuration of the aircraft is not among the top three challenges that UAM (Urban Air Mobility) pioneers are facing today. Why do I bring it forward, then?
Simply because, throughout the life-cycle of the aircraft, major changes on the airframe are avoided, not only due to cost or performance concerns, but also because of huge re-certification efforts required. Some minor modifications, however, such as adding winglets or external domes for sensors which are covered under supplementary type certificates (STC) are more common. Beyond that, you can easily change or upgrade almost any other component (avionics, engines, furnishing, etc.) that comes on the aircraft. So, the airframe shape or form (housing all the other components) becomes single fundamental element that will affect all; regulatory, environmental or public concerns.
Who is Doing What?
According to polls, the public tends to favor eVTOL products by well-known manufacturers vs the start-ups. So, it will be worthwhile to see which configuration the aerospace and automotive giants are preferring:
- Airbus: A³ Vahana and CityAirbus
Back in 2015, Airbus had been the first (among the traditional aerospace companies) to announce its plans to secure a place in the commercial eVTOL market. “A-cubed Vahana” is a tilt-wing (i.e. vectored thrust) aircraft project being handled by an Airbus subsidiary in the Silicon Valley. Whereas, CityAirbus is a four passenger, autonomous wingless multi-copter program ran by the Airbus Helicopters.
- Bell: Nexus and APT
Nexus is a six-passenger vectored thrust aircraft announced in 2017 Uber Elevate Summit. On the other hand, APT (Autonomous Pod Transport) is 20 to 32 kg payload tail-sitter that we can classify as a vectored thrust vehicle.
- Boeing/ Aurora: PAV and CAV
Creatively named as the Passenger Air Vehicle (PAV) developed together with Aurora Flight Sciences is part of the Boeing NeXt urban air mobility project. It is a two-seat lift+push design which made its maiden flight in January 2019. Also a part of Boing NeXt, CAV (Cargo Air Vehicle) is a 225 kg payload wingless multi-copter.
- Embrarer: DreamMaker
Also announced during the 2017 Uber Elevate Summit, the DreamMaker is a piloted four passenger lift+push aircraft.
- Rolls-Royce: EVTOL
During 2018 Farnborough Airshow, Rolls-Royce announced the EVTOL concept. Rolls-Royce’s aircraft is a hybrid tilt-wing (i.e. vectored thrust) carrying 4-5 passengers.
- Lockheed Martin/ Sikorsky: VERT and ARES (with Piasecki)
Lockheed Martin and its new subsidiary Sikorsky are working on both military and commercial VTOL concepts. While Lockheed Martin is indulged in development of a vectored thrust configuration for military use together with AVX and Piasecki, Sikorsky is working on a project named VERT. And that is all we know, for the time being…
- Toyota: Cartivator SkyDrive and Joby S4 (co-investor)
In 2017 Toyota agreed to invest in Cartivator -a Japanese start-up, to develop the world’s smallest flying car. SkyDrive concept is a single-seater wingless multi-copter. Additionally, Toyota is among the investors in the Joby Aviation’s S4 program. S4 is a four-seat vectored thrust aircraft.
- Volvo/ Lotus: Terrafugia TF-2
Chinese company Zhejiang Geely, which owns the Volvo and Lotus car brands, has acquired Terrafugia in 2017. In its current form, TF-2 is rather a modal transportation “system” than a simple “air vehicle”. The flying component of the well thought-out design is a lift+push solution.
Out of the 12 (excluding Sikorsky’s VERT) vehicles above, 50% have preferred vectored thrust, while lift+push and wingless multi-copter have 25% preferences each. The choice of giants are not in-line with the alternatives preferred in the eVTOL community. So, we can easily say that the best configuration is yet to be agreed.
Basic Disadvantages of Popular Configurations
The wingless (multi-copter) designs (preferred by 45% of the whole community and 25% of aerospace and automotive giants), although very popular and made the “drone revolution” possible, are doomed due to their slow top speeds. For commercial eVTOLs, the economics of the vehicle would dictate to perform as many cycles as possible in a given time. In addition to that, large un-protected propellers placed close to the ground is a major safety concern for passengers and crew alike. Therefore, although simple and well understood, multi-copter designs will unlikely be the choice for a successful flying-car design. (Best illustrative example: EHang 184/ 216)
Despite the simplicity and weight advantages offered by lift+cruise designs (preferred by 12% of the whole community and 25% of aerospace and automotive giants), they inherently possess serious safety challenges. Un-protected (i.e. un-ducted) horizontal propellers, operating very close to ground (usually due to the size limitations of small vehicles) constitute a safety risk just like the multi-copters. Therefore, I see a bleak future for the designs utilizing unprotected props located close to ground. (Best illustrative example: Boeing/ Aurora PAV)
Vectored thrust designs (preferred by 40% of the whole community and 50% of aerospace and automotive giants), provide the best compromise between versatility and speed. But, when utilize un-protected propellers (tilt-wings mostly), they have the same disadvantages of lift+cruise designs (Best illustrative example: Airbus A³ Vahana). On the other hand, ducts employed to eliminate risks associated with props, bring in weight disadvantages and some additional drag during the cruise (Best illustrative example: Bell Nexus).
Then What?
So, what is the solution? Which design will prevail? Frankly speaking, I don’t know! But, I believe that the applications employing Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP) concept through small units and in large quantities are closer to an optimum solution. Such configurations give way to enclose unnecessary units during cruise in other components (i.e. wings) to reduce drag. Additionally, large amount of redundancy in propulsion system relaxes safety margins. Aurora Flight Science’s VTOL X-Plane Program XV-24A LightningStrike and Lilium’s Electric Jet are best available examples of this concept, both of which have successfully demonstrated the feasibility of the concept.
The LightningStrike program had aimed to develop a vertical take-off and landing 12,000 lb (5.4 t) demonstrator aircraft with 18 motors in the wings and 6 motors in canards, that will achieve a top sustained flight speed of 300-400 kt (555-740 km/h). A 20%-scale demonstrator aircraft weighing 325 lb (147 kg) with a flight model of the full-scale demonstrator was flown in March 2016. Surprisingly, in April 2018 it was decided that the subscale model demonstrated the program’s major objectives and DARPA cancelled the project.
Lilium’s two-seat “Eagle” prototype completed a series of unmanned test flights in April 2017. It had a total of 36 electric fans: 12 on the upper surface of each wing with tilting flaps and two rows of three fans on each side of the canard, which was designed to be retracted in cruise flight.
Until someone comes up with anti-gravity technology, I believe this is the best shape for flying-cars of urban air mobility initiative…
Hoversurf’s New Video Blog
Hoversurf, the maker of the acclaimed Hoversurf Hoverbike, has begun a new video blog discussing urban air mobility. This week, Alex Atamanov explains the Venturi engine, which uses an electric ducted fan. Electric ducted fans are part of many popular VTOL designs: Follow Hoversurf on Youtube Hoversurf began delivering its Hoverbike to customers in September of 2018, starting with the Dubai police...

Hoversurf’s New Video Blog

Hoversurf, the maker of the acclaimed Hoversurf Hoverbike, has begun a new video blog discussing urban air mobility.
This week, Alex Atamanov explains the Venturi engine, which uses an electric ducted fan. Electric ducted fans are part of many popular VTOL designs:
Hoversurf began delivering its Hoverbike to customers in September of 2018, starting with the Dubai police force. Read more about the latest news from Hoversurf here.
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The Skyworks Global VertiJet™
Skyworks Global- A company that’s specialized in ‘gyroplanes’ for over twenty years-is producing a powerful VTOL business aircraft. With the Skyworks Global Heliplane ready to manufacture, and the HAWK-5 already in the air, the company is well set as a powerful player in the VTOL aircraft space. The Skyworks Global Verti-Jet is a business conversion of existing technology used in the...

The Skyworks Global VertiJet™

Skyworks Global- A company that’s specialized in ‘gyroplanes’ for over twenty years-is producing a powerful VTOL business aircraft. With the Skyworks Global Heliplane ready to manufacture, and the HAWK-5 already in the air, the company is well set as a powerful player in the VTOL aircraft space.
The Skyworks Global Verti-Jet is a business conversion of existing technology used in the company’s ‘Heliplane’. The Helipane (featured below) is currently being marketed towards the U.S Marines. According to Skyworks Global’s brochure for the Heliplane, the aircraft can reach speeds of up to 400mph and has a range of 1,000 miles. It flies a combination of slowed-rotor compound lift technology (similar to the Carter Copter), a fixed-wing for the lift in horizontal flight, and turbofan or turboprop engines for propulsion.
Above: The Skyworks ‘Heliplane’ which is currently being marketed to the U.S Marines. Top speed is 400mph with a range of 1,000 miles.
According to Skyworks Global, the company’s motivation for building gyroplanes comes from the fact that they are both versatile and economical, as well as “unconstrained by the physics imposed speed, range, and payload limitations of a helicopter”. The company has been working on gyroplanes for over twenty years, starting with the Hawk 4, which flew at the Salt-Lake City Olympics in 2002.
Above: The Skyworks ‘Hawk 4’ which flew at the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002.
Skyworks has also demonstrated an interest in and awareness of the upcoming air-taxi market. It’s ‘Scouthawk’ aircraft, marketed for the military, border patrol, law enforcement, rescue, urban mobility, and more, was featured in a recent Skyworks Global concept video for air taxi use:
Why it’s important: While the Skyworks Verti-Jet is not an electric VTOL, it has a very strong use case for business travel between cities, much like the Transcend Air Vy 400 or the XTI Tri-Fan 600. With a depth of experience in gyroscope flight technology, and a potential air taxi in the ScoutHawk, the company is well positioned to provide vehicles for the urban air mobility space.
Boeing’s Newest Aircraft Just Made its First Flight
Boeing’s newest passenger air vehicle (PAV) made its first flight in Manassas, VA yesterday, completing a takeoff, hover, and landing flight profile. The aircraft was designed and developed by Boeing NeXt, which leads the company’s urban air mobility development efforts. Boeing NeXt and subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences verified some of the vehicles autonomous functions and ground control systems during the...

Boeing’s Newest Aircraft Just Made its First Flight

Boeing’s newest passenger air vehicle (PAV) made its first flight in Manassas, VA yesterday, completing a takeoff, hover, and landing flight profile. The aircraft was designed and developed by Boeing NeXt, which leads the company’s urban air mobility development efforts.
Boeing NeXt and subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences verified some of the vehicles autonomous functions and ground control systems during the flight on Tuesday. Watch video of the flight:
The concept for Boeing’s PAV follows their early prototype reveals, with four rotors per side of the aircraft providing lift, and a single pusher propeller providing thrust for forward flight. Currently, the aircraft has a number of ground sensors attached to the skids on each side that also serve as landing gear, but that may change in the future. Furthermore, this iteration of the PAV has seating for two passengers.
The takeoff, hover, and landing of Boeing’s PAV yesterday pave the way for envelope expansion flight testing as the handling characteristics and autonomous flight control systems are refined during further operation of the aircraft. The aircraft is 30 feet long and 28 feet wide, and has a range of 50 miles.
“In one year, we have progressed from a conceptual design to a flying prototype,” said Boeing Chief Technology Officer Greg Hyslop. “Boeing’s expertise and innovation have been critical in developing aviation as the world’s safest and most efficient form of transportation, and we will continue to lead with a safe, innovative and responsible approach to new mobility solutions.”
“Boeing was there when the aviation industry was born and in our second century, we will unlock the potential of the urban air mobility market,” said Steve Nordlund, vice president and general manager of Boeing NeXt. “From building air vehicles to airspace integration, we will usher in a future of safe, low-stress mobility in cities and regions around the world.”
Why it’s important: Boeing’s rapid progress from prototype to first flight of its new Passenger Air Vehicle substantiate (in part) some of the claims that the additional resources of larger OEM’s in the aerospace field may help overcome hurdles that smaller companies may require more time to navigate. Now that the PAV is in flight testing, others will likely be watching to learn lessons from the interactions between Boeing and the FAA once certification flight testing is commenced.
Learn more about Boeing’s PAV here, and be sure to subscribe to TransportUP’s newsletter and podcast to stay up to date on all things urban aviation!
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