Indian aircraft leasing group Vman Aviation Services has agreed to add Lyte Aviation’s planned 40-seat LA-44 SkyBus hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft to its portfolio. A deal announced on November 1 covers preorders for 10 of the aircraft being developed by the European start-up with deposits to be paid at a later date as Lyte Aviation gets closer to anticipated type certification later this decade.
Vman was founded in 2021 and is based in Gandhinagar in the western Indian state of Gujarat. Its portfolio consists of an Airbus H125 helicopter, a pair of ATR 72-600 regional airliners, and 10 Piper training aircraft. It holds further orders for 10 of Hindustan Aeronautics’ Light Utility Helicopters for entry into service in 2025 or 2026 and another 30 unspecified training aircraft to arrive in 2025.
According to Vman CEO Vishok Mansingh, the company intends to place further large orders for helicopters and commuter aircraft in 2024. To meet short-term requirements, it is also purchasing some preowned aircraft.
Mansingh views the SkyBus as a way to unlock potential growth in India’s regional air transportation network. “We want to be one of the first ones that access this mass market in India,” he commented. “In Mumbai alone, there are 1.5 million passengers traveling by train. So we definitely see the value that Lyte’s 40-seater eVTOL will create for our markets that we have access to.”
India's Population Boom Prompts Transportation Rethink
India claims to have the world’s largest population, having overtaken China to reach more than 1.4 billion inhabitants, living in what is the world’s seventh-largest nation by land mass. The country has almost 50 cities with more than one million population and about 250 more with between 100,000 and one million.
According to Mansingh, the Indian government supports efforts to launch new last-mile connectivity options. The Vman team estimates that this approach could support the business cases for more than 1,000 new air routes, taking advantage of the SkyBus’s projected range of 1,000 kilometers (625 miles).
Lyte Aviation says it aims to have a full-scale prototype ready to start test flights by the end of 2025. It is targeting type certification and the start of series production in 2028 or 2029.
Initially, four turboprop engines fitted in pairs to each of the wings will power the tandem tiltwing aircraft. On each wingtip, a hydrogen fuel cell electric motor will provide additional power. Lyte’s ultimate objective is to rework the aircraft with all-hydrogen propulsion but first, it wants to lay the groundwork for a VTOL model that it believes will transform regional aviation through its ability to bypass existing airports.
“We see the value of eVTOLs in India, but so far the two- to four-seater eVTOLs were not really filling the market demand that we are focused on,” Mansingh commented. “When we were introduced to the 40-seater eVTOL by Lyte Aviation, we immediately connected the pain points of our region with the benefits that their SkyBus offers. We want to make sure that we are the front runners of mass transit disruption in India, as it is inevitably coming.”
For now, Vman has not indicated what type of operating companies it expects to become leasing customers for its SkyBus fleet. India’s aviation regulators do not yet have defined plans for certifying new electric and hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft and may take their lead from the EASA and FAA in this regard.
“If you consider the ever-growing congested roads [in India], due to the ever-growing population, ever-growing demand for passenger mobility, especially in megacities, it is a great place to offer point-to-point movement of passengers in masses,” said Lyte Aviation founder and CEO Freshta Farzam. “Our 40-seater eVTOL comes without reliance on runways—we will mostly require a landing pad of 40 square meters.”
Lyte Aviation has also been exploring early use cases for the SkyBus in Europe and North America. Last week, it announced a partnership with Twente Airport in the east of the Netherlands.