VIMANA AAV

The Vimana AAV (autonomous air vehicle) is being developed by Vimana Global, in Redwood City, CA, USA. The Vimana is an eVTOL with 8 rotors, 4 mounted on each wing. The wings of the AAV rotate to facilitate vertical takeoff and landing and also accelerated forward flight.

Aircraft Type: Winged intercity eVTOL 
Powerplant: 8 electric/hybrid-powered thrusters @ 60kW

Range: 900 km / 600 mi

Top Speed: 280km/h

Propeller Configuration: 8 rotors, 1.6m diameter each

Passenger/Payload Capacity: 2-4 passengers

Autonomy Level: Piloted with Semi-Autonomy

Wingspan/Dimensions: 9.5 m span (incl. propellers), 4.8 m length (excl. propellers

Additional Information

Overall Height: 1.95 m

Cockpit Dimensions: 4.5 m x 1.8 m x 1.4 m

Max Take-Off Mass (MTOM): 1,300 kg

Max Payload: 400 kg

Operating Empty Weight (OEW): 900 kg

Max Flight Time (@MTOM): 3 hrs @ 200 km/h + 30 min safety

Rate of Climb (@MTOM): 15 m/s

Rate of Descent: 12 m/s

Altitude (Service Ceiling): 4,500 m

Altitude (hovering): 4,000 m

Noise Level: ~70 dB(A) at 100 m

Vimana is proposing not only to design and build an autonomous vehicle - they're also proposing to integrate it with blockchain technology. The company plans on using its own blockchain network to compete with the likes of UberAIR instead of attempting to integrate with that system. A full-scale mockup of the Vimana was on display at the Davos World Economic Forum in January of 2018, and a teaser video of successful flight tests show a strong future for the technology they are busy developing and validating.