Wisk continues to eye the end of the year for first flight of its Generation 6 eVTOL as it strives for certification of the autonomous aircraft by the end of the decade, Catherine MacGowan, v-p of APAC and air operations, said on Wednesday at the Singapore Airshow.
The Boeing business unit attended the show this year as it continues its education campaign about advanced air mobility in the Asia Pacific region. Based in California, Wisk has a sharp eye on the Asia-Pacific market with teams in New Zealand and Australia. The company has also partnered with Japan Airlines Engineering Company (JALEC), to develop with plans for the operation and maintenance of Wisk’s autonomous air taxis in Japan—although JAL has not yet committed to purchasing any of Wisk’s aircraft.
Flying its autonomous air taxi prototypes since 2010—and collecting 255 global patents along the way—Wisk has amassed at least 1,750 flights across five iterations, and “all of that expertise and learning is built into our Generation 6 aircraft,” MacGowan said.
Built in its hangar in California, the Gen 6 will account for only the aircraft used to work with the FAA for certification. Plans call for an initial certification in the U.S. but then around the world, including in Asia.
MacGowan said there would be space for carry-on and personal items in the four-passenger vehicle. It will operate at similar altitudes to a helicopter, at around 2,500 to 4,000 feet, and fly to a range of 90 miles, including reserves, at speeds of 110 to 120 knots.
While autonomous, Wisk is developing plans for supervision by a multi-vehicle supervisor who will monitor operations and work with air traffic control. Plans call for certification of the aircraft for IFR operations.
Working with the new concept, she also stressed the importance of safety measures Wisk is adopting as it develops the aircraft, including a simplified design for fewer parts and increased simplicity, no single point of failure, and multiple redundancies across batteries, engines, communications, and other systems.
While targeting the end of the decade, certification will depend on acceptance from the authorities. Wisk has worked with the FAA on autonomy as well as with other authorities and maintains that all have such operations in their plans.
“This is the direction the industry is moving in autonomy,” she said. “It allows for safety, allows for predictability, and allows the scale as we start to see the kinds of numbers of aircraft that are projected for Asia and around the world. This makes it a more affordable and accessible platform. That is why we chose, with Boeing support, to go straight to an automated aircraft.”
This design includes not only the aircraft but also the airspace integration, communications, and all the supporting processes, including new types of training. Wisk has conducted trials of the concept at its autonomy laboratory, including with a multi-vehicle supervisor.
“We realize that autonomy is a feature that people want to understand more about,” MacGowan said. “We spend a lot of time talking to regulators and also the public about what autonomy looks like and how it's predictable and safe. We're conducting flight trial activity both in the U.S. and New Zealand with different platforms in the U.S.”
The company also uses surrogate helicopters carrying technology such as automated flight management systems. Wisk also has conducted trials in New Zealand.
Wisk continues to eye the end of the year for first flight of its Generation 6 eVTOL air taxi as it strives for certification of the autonomous aircraft by the end of the decade, Catherine MacGowan, v-p of APAC and air operations, told reporters at the Singapore Airshow on Wednesday.
The Boeing-backed aircraft developer is campaigning to educate the public about advanced air mobility in the Asia-Pacific region. Based in California, Wisk has a strong eye on the APAC market with teams in New Zealand and Australia.
Flying its autonomous air taxi prototypes since 2010, Wisk has amassed at least 1,750 flights across five iterations, and “all of that expertise and learning is built into our Generation 6 aircraft.”
Wisk will use the Gen 6 aircraft for FAA type certification testing with the FAA. Plans call to initially certify it in the U.S. first, with the APAC region to follow.
The aircraft will be certified as a fully autonomous vehicle. MacGowan said there would be space for carry-on luggage and personal items in the four-passenger vehicle. It will operate at similar altitudes of around 2,500 to 4,000 feet and have a range of 90 miles, including reserves, with speeds of 110 to 120 knots. MacGowan noted that it would be a fast-charging vehicle, estimating that it will take around 15 minutes to recharge as passengers are swapped.
Although the aircraft is capable of fully autonomous flight, Wisk is developing plans for supervision by a multi-vehicle supervisor who will monitor operations and work with air traffic control.
While targeting the end of the decade, certification will be dependent on acceptance from the authorities. “We realize that autonomy is a feature that people want to understand more about,” MacGowan said. “We spend a lot of time talking to regulators and also the public about what autonomy looks like and how it's predictable and safe. We're conducting flight trial activity both in the U.S. and New Zealand with different platforms in the U.S.”