Supernal Opens Policy Hub in Washington, D.C.
Supernal has opened a policy and commercial hub in the U.S. capital, the eVTOL developer announced this week. The 28,000-sq-ft office will be dedicated to commercial operations and regulatory processes, such as the type certification of Supernal’s four-passenger SA-1 eVTOL aircraft.
The Hyundai subsidiary is also involved in advanced air mobility rulemaking discussions with U.S. regulators. In 2021, the company established the Airspace Management Consortium to develop a concept of operations and design standards to be considered by policymakers.
"The decision to open a three-story office in downtown Washington, D.C., reflects Supernal's earnest commitment to serving as an industry resource to regulators and policymakers as they shape AAM," said Jaiwon Shin, Supernal CEO and president of Hyundai Motor Group.
Eve and DHL Partner on eVTOL Supply-chain Studies
Eve Air Mobility is working with DHL Supply Chain, a division of Germany-based shipping and logistics company Deutsche Post DHL, to study “key demands and supply chain characteristics” for the future operation of Eve’s eVTOL air taxi.
In a memorandum of understanding signed August 9, the public company, which is majority owned by Embraer and DHL, pledged to “explore and understand best practices for supplying operators and service centers with spare parts and inputs, with an emphasis on batteries and the specific requirements concerning transport, storage, and disposal of those devices,” Eve officials said in a statement.
“In addition to offering high-performance logistics, our premise is to reduce the environmental impact of the supply chain in line with our purpose of offering more sustainable products and services,” said Luiz Mauad, Eve’s v-p of services and operations solutions.
AAM Institute Seeks Nominees for Women in Emerging Aviation Technologies Awards
The Advanced Air Mobility Institute has issued a call for nominations for four new awards to be presented at the seventh annual Women in Emerging Aviation Technologies Awards event on October 25 at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
Women and Drones, which organizes the annual award ceremony, had already closed nominations for the previously announced award categories on June 16. Nominations for the new categories—including Unsung Hero, Fresh Face, Bright Idea, and Grassroots—are due by September 1. Submissions should be emailed to the AAM Institute at [email protected].
Eviation and MagniX Parent Company Clermont Appoint Aerospace Leader
The Clermont Group, which owns electric aircraft developer Eviation Aircraft and propulsion innovator MagniX, has appointed Robbie Bourke as its head of aerospace. Bourk, who has previously held senior roles with air transport consultancy Oliver Wyman, Virgin Atlantic Airways, and Airbus, will lead the company’s activities in sustainable aviation.
Singapore-based Clermont is also active in healthcare and financial services. Eviation is working on a nine-passenger all-electric fixed-wing aircraft called the Alice, for which MagniX has developed the propulsion system; it also plans to convert existing aircraft, including the Twin Otter and the Cessna Caravan. The CEOs of Eviation and MagniX will report directly to the Clermont board. The head of aerospace position at Clermont has previously been held by Dominique Spragg.
In a busy week for appointments in the advanced air mobility sector, eVTOL aircraft developer Air has chosen Matthew Smith as its director of certification and airworthiness. He has previously worked on multiple U.S. military aircraft programs, as well as in the engineering department of Gulfstream Aerospace. The Israel-based company is working on the Air One vehicle.
Heart Aerospace has appointed Simon McNamara as its director of government and industry affairs. He previously held a similar role with airline group IATA, after working for UK regional carrier Flybe and the European Regions Airline Association. The Swedish company is developing a 30-passenger hybrid-electric aircraft called the ES-30.
Autonomous flight technology company Aura Network Systems has nominated Lisa Peterson, its vice president for business development, to serve on the Advanced Air Mobility committee of the National Air Transport Association. Aura, which is working to implement advanced levels of autonomy in the U.S. National Airspace System, will support the committee’s efforts to prepare airport and other infrastructure to allow charter operators to use new types of aircraft, including eVTOL vehicles.
Mayman Aerospace has appointed Manu Sharma as its new chief engineer to support efforts to develop several VTOL aircraft including the Speeder air utility vehicle. Sharma joined the Californian company from Virgin Orbit, where he was chief engineer for flight sciences. He previously held several senior technical roles in the Boeing group and holds a PhD degree in aerospace engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
GKN, Marshall, and Parker Join Forces on Liquid Hydrogen Fuel Systems
A memorandum of understanding signed this week by GKN Aerospace, Marshall, and Parker Aerospace paves the way for the development of liquid hydrogen fuel systems for aircraft. The partners are building on an alliance announced during June’s Paris Air Show that is preparing for flight tests with a new hydrogen fuel cell system by the end of this decade.
GKN, which is a Europe-based major tier 1 supplier that also specializes in aerostructures, has prioritized work on hydrogen propulsion through programs such as H2GEAR, which form the basis for plans to ground test a scalable hydrogen electric fuel cell propulsion system in 2025. Aircraft systems supplier Parker and modification specialist Marshall will support this project. The partners envisage the technology being used for aircraft including subregional airliners with fewer than 19 passengers and later larger aircraft seating up to 100.
Ryse Starts Crowdfunding Campaign To Advance Recon eVTOL Aircraft
Ryse Aero Technologies has launched an equity crowdfunding campaign on the DealMaker platform to support work on its Recon ultralight eVTOL aircraft. The Ohio-based company says it has already logged more than 260 provisional orders for the single-seat vehicle, which is expected to operate under Part 103 rules for which no pilot’s license is required. Ryse believes that farmers and ranchers will be among the early customers for the vehicle, which the company said will be ready to start delivering by the end of this year, having already conducted more than 600 flights.
