03 June 2023 || 3 min read

Boeing has purchased all of Kitty Hawk’s stake in Wisk in a move to become a complete owner of the Wisk Aerial Mobility development company. This new full ownership structure allow Wisk to more fully utilize Boeing’s expertise in development, testing, and certification, though Wisk will continue to operate as a separate company.

Although Wisk was initially founded as a joint venture between Boeing and eVTOL developer Kitty Hawk, with Boeing having invested over $450 million into Wisk last year, the company until now had been financially and supported by Boeing, rather than a subsidiary. With this new development, Wisk has now become a wholly-owned subsidiary under Boeing, making the two companies a single shareholder.

Despite Boeing’s new ownership of Wisk, Wisk’s CEO Brian Yutko has maintained that the company will continue its current operations and development of the aircraft as its own entity. Because Boeing and Wisk have already been working closely together on this upcoming aircraft for several years, current operations for the company will likely continue as they are, although Wisk’s aircraft will now utlimately be a Boeing product.

By assuming ownership of Wisk, Boeing gains an opportunity to consolidate Wisk’s efforts and streamline the development process, while simultaneously making themselves a major industry leader in the eVTOL industry. This acquisition solidifies Boeing’s commitment to becoming a long-term leader in the aerial mobility space, and to bringing electric urban aircraft to market.

Late last year, Wisk unveiled the latest version of its aircraft; a four-passenger, autonomous, fully-electric tilt-rotor eVTOL with a range of 90 miles and the ability to charge in 15 minutes. With this aircraft, Wisk hopes to transform the way people move around and between large cities and connected regional destinations.

Why it’s important: This move by the two companies demonstrates Boeing’s belief in the significance and upcoming potential of these new aircraft. As eVTOL moves further down the certification pipeline towards operation, we can expect to see more major OEMs seeking to become a part of this new value offer. Additionally, this new relationship will allow Wisk to fully access the entirety of Boeing’s resources, offering the company a even faster and even more experienced route to certification and commercial operation. By leveraging Wisk’s expertise and technological advancements in eVTOL aircraft, Boeing is now also poised to accelerate the development of safe and reliable air taxi services.

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Posted by Benji

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