German start-up Baaz is working on an all-electric eVTOL aircraft that it says will significantly overtake the range provided by rival designs with the ability to fly up to 200 km (125 miles). The distinctive design for the B5 model features folding wings to give it more flexibility in urban areas, as well as a novel propulsion system built around five ducted propellers.
The company was founded in September 2019 by Hossein Malek Zadeh, a former senior engineer with automotive technology group Siemens-Valeo. It aims to have a prototype ready to fly within two years, as well as an iron bird ground test unit. It anticipates completing type certification, which will initially be under EASA’s Special Condition VTOL CS-23 rules, by the end of 2025.
According to Baaz, the 13.5-meter (44-foot) wingspan plays a big part in delivering what it says will be market-leading range on a single battery charge. A later plan to develop a hydrogen-powered version of the B5 is expected to increase the range to 350 km (219 miles).
The wings will fold in from the ends to reduce the span to 7.8 meters. The aircraft will be able to take off and land in conventional STOL mode as required.
Four of the ducted propellers are positioned high and horizontally in each corner of the fuselage—i.e., two in the front and two at the rear. The rear propellers can swivel up to support cruise flight, and a fifth propeller is encased within the rear fuselage. Baaz claims the ducted propellers will have a lower noise profile than propulsion systems on similar aircraft, with the configuration displacing the noise tonality.
According to the company, the fifth propeller is sufficient to land safely if one of the other four propellers fails. It also allows the rotational speed of the other propellers to be lowered, cutting the overall noise profile, as well as supporting a smoother transition between the vertical and cruise phases of flight.
The B5 will be equipped with as-yet-unspecified detect-and-avoid technology to guard against collisions with other aircraft or ground obstacles. The company claims that the fifth propeller acts as a further safety feature because the pilot can activate this to quickly change altitude.
According to chief marketing officer Jacques Gatard, the fifth ducted propeller is a significant safety feature in that it can compensate for the loss of power and balance if one of the external ducted propellers fails. It also spreads the weight more effectively across the airframe.
At face value, the B5’s folding wings and tilting rear propellers might seem to be quite challenging from an engineering and certification point of view. Leonardo and Bell Boeing faced significant challenges in developing their respective AW609 and MV-22 tiltrotor designs, but the Baaz engineering team claims that with both of these aircraft much larger sections of the wings and engines rotated and that its moving parts have a much lower mass. It also maintains that the elevated position of the B5’s propellers does not interrupt the airflow over the wing.
The B5’s cabin features three seats in the rear section behind two seats in the front for the pilot and another passenger. Since the rear seats can be removed, this configuration allows space for a stretcher to be fitted for medical support operations or cargo loaded for logistics flights, such as for resupplying ships or offshore installations.
Baaz expects that in addition to air taxi operators its customer base will include government agencies, shipping and logistics companies, emergency medical support providers, police, media companies, and private individuals. The company expects to initially operate the aircraft itself but it indicated that this may be for only an initial period of around five years while the advanced air mobility market matures. It also expects to develop revenue streams from using flight data to support the development of software for a variety of applications, including aerospace-related work and supporting companies that need information, such as weather and topography data.
Baaz intends to outsource manufacturing of many of the B5’s components and systems, with its role focused on the overall design and technology integration. Final assembly of the aircraft will be conducted at the company’s headquarters at Erlangen in southern Germany. The town is a major center for the German electrical engineering group Siemens, which has extensive expertise in electrification and automation.
The company is entirely funded by Malek Zadeh. He previously ran the Siemens-Valeo group’s electric powertrain operation, working on programs for carmakers Daimler, AMG, and VW and establishing a test center.
CFO Arne Lehmkuhl said that Baaz will seek further direct investment and loans to support the program. “We don’t expect to make the same mistakes as other start-ups, but avoiding the costly trial-and-error phase,” he told FutureFlight.
The company, which is named after the Persian word for a goshawk, has already filed patent applications covering the propulsion system and folding wings. It also intends to patent its battery-cooling system.
