Former Airbus Leader Set To Head eVTOL Pioneer Volocopter

Volocopter is refreshing its leadership team with the appointment of a former senior Airbus executive as its CEO and managing director. The German eVTOL aircraft developer today announced that Dirk Hoke, who until September 2021 was CEO of Airbus Defence & Space, will succeed Florian Reuter, who is stepping down in September.

The March 8 announcement came a few days after Volocopter reported that South Korea’s WP Investments, along with Honeywell and previous investor Atlantis, are the main backers for its $170 million Series E funding round. The company says it has now raised $579 million and is valued at $1.7 billion.

The funds will support Volocopter’s efforts to bring the two-seat VoloCity vehicle to market, as well as to complete the development of its VoloDrone autonomous freighter and the larger VoloConnect passenger aircraft. They will also be used for work aimed at establishing the first air taxi services, probably from 2024, in cities that are expected to include Singapore, Rome, and Paris.

Reuter joined Volocopter in January 2015, almost four years after the start-up was formed by five people to start working on an ambitious project to launch urban air mobility services with a family of eVTOL vehicles. Volocopter said that he is leaving the company “upon his own wishes” and that he proposed Hoke as his successor.

Hoke spent almost six years with Airbus and ended his career with the European aerospace and defense group with a seat on its executive committee. He left the company, which is now working on its own CityAirbus NextGen aircraft, last year as part of a reshuffle of the Airbus leadership team instigated by new CEO Guillaume Faury. He previously worked with the German engineering group Siemens for 10 years, rising to be CEO of its Large Drives electric motors division.

“Out of an impressive lineup of candidates, Dirk Hoke was our absolute preferred choice,” said Volocopter advisory board chairman Stefan Klocke. “Combining our success with Dirk’s experience and vision for our company, Volocopter will continue to lead the emerging industry and successfully master the coming phase of growth and commercialization. The ability to attract such a renowned industry leader is proof of the quality of the work done by our team.”

Over the next six months, Hoke and Reuter will work closely during a handover period. “Bringing electric air taxis to market in the next few years is a dream not only for me but for many,” Hoke commented. “My experience from Airbus and Siemens will help us monetize on the leading market position Volocopter has achieved under Florian’s leadership. Volocopter’s product lineup, its certification progress, team spirit, and ecosystem approach put us in a unique competitive position.”

Volocopter started flying its VoloCity two-seat VTOL prototype in December 2021 and is also working on an autonomous freight vehicle called the VoloDrone and a larger passenger-carrying aircraft called the VoloConnect. It claims to be the only eVTOL developer to have secured both design and production organization approvals from EASA.