Although Southeast Asia’s nascent advanced air mobility industry is picking up steam, it’s mostly Western eVTOL aircraft developers that have so far announced plans to launch commercial air taxi services in the region. Now an Indonesian company is throwing its hat in the ring with plans for a four-passenger model that could be the country's first new civil aircraft to enter service in the 21st century.
Headquartered in the West Java capital of Bandung, Vela Prima Nusantara is developing a piloted eVTOL aircraft called the Vela Alpha, which it aims to have certified and in service in Asia and North America in 2028. The company plans to produce battery-electric and hybrid-electric versions of the vehicle, which it is offering for air taxi services and aerial sightseeing tours, as well as cargo, surveillance, and medevac applications.
Vela revealed its Alpha eVTOL aircraft concept during the Singapore Airshow last month, where a subscale model was on display at the Indonesian Aerospace exhibit. Indonesian Aerospace, also known as PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI), is a state-owned aircraft manufacturer that has partnered with Vela on the Alpha’s development. PTDI will oversee the production of Vela’s aircraft, which will take place at its facilities in Bandung, Heber Mey Fredryk Panjaitan, a business development specialist at Vela and PTDI, told AIN.
In the 1990s, Indonesian Aerospace worked to bring a 68-seat twin turboprop regional airliner called the N250 to market. It abandoned the program in 1998, in part due to the fallout from that year's Asian financial crisis.
In 2014, the company introduced plans for a 19-seat aircraft designated as the N219, and another Indonesian group called Regio Aviasi Industri tried to resurrect the N250 as a larger model called the R80 to compete with Bombardier's Q400 and the ATR72. The timeline for both of these programs remains unclear, although the Indonesian government has included the R80 in its national aerospace strategy for 2022-2045.
During the Singapore Airshow, Vela announced that it has already signed letters of intent with at least two customers covering the purchase of up to 120 Alpha eVTOL aircraft. Its first customers include helicopter tour and charter provider Fly Bali, which operates a heliport in the island’s South Kuta district, and AD Trade Belgium, a consulting firm that aims to use the aircraft for VIP transport and medevac missions in Africa, according to Vela.
The Alpha aircraft features a lift-plus-cruise configuration with eight lift propellers mounted to a fixed wing and one pusher propeller in the rear. Operating solely on battery power, the eVTOL version has an anticipated range of 100 kilometers (62 miles) on a single charge, with a top speed of 250 kph (155 mph). The hybrid version, which Vela refers to as “hVTOL,” will be nearly identical but with an additional generator that functions as a range extender. Vela expects the hVTOL aircraft will offer a range of 500 kilometers (310 miles) and a maximum speed of 300 kph (186 mph).
Vela has already begun wind tunnel testing with a subscale model of the Alpha vehicle and hopes to fly it for the first time later this year. The company aims to begin flight testing with a full-scale prototype by the end of 2027, putting it on track for type certification before the end of 2028. It plans to initially certify the vehicle with Indonesian civil aviation authorities as well as the U.S. FAA, to launch operations in the Asia-Pacific region and North America.
Vela says the Alpha aircraft will cost between $1.5 million and $2 million. For comparison, the Lilium Jet eVTOL aircraft has a price tag of at least $7 million, whereas EHang is offering its single-seat autonomous eVTOL aircraft for as little as $334,000. EHang also has plans for commercial eVTOL operations in Indonesia; the Chinese company recently received an order for 100 aircraft from Indonesian start-up Prestige Aviation.
Indonesia’s geography renders the country particularly well suited for eVTOL and other advanced air mobility aircraft, such as electric seaplanes, which can improve connectivity in rural and underserved regions. It is the largest archipelago nation in the world with more than 17,000 islands, about one-third of which are inhabited by people.
Indonesia's Java, which contains the capital city of Jakarta, is the most populous island in the world and houses more than half the country’s residents. Vela says its eVTOL aircraft could ferry passengers between Jakarta International Airport and the city's central business district in just eight minutes, whereas the same trip by ground vehicle takes 60 to 90 minutes.
In recent years, the Indonesian government has been working to reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels through initiatives that support electric vehicles, for example, yet crude oil and petroleum products remain its largest imports. Meanwhile, the country is blessed with significant nickel reserves that could feed into a domestic supply chain for batteries that power electric vehicles, including aircraft.
