FutureFlight

Once Regent's seaglider enters the water, the vehicle takes off and glides above the surface at speeds of up to 180 mph. The Boston-based company, which has raised $9 million in seed funding, has built a one-quarter scale prototype of the wing-in-ground-effect vehicle and intends to start testing this before the end of 2021. The vehicle will be certified under International Maritime Organization rules.

Vancouver, on Canada's Pacific coast, is set to be an early adopter of advanced air mobility services and is the main focus of a project to develop automated air traffic management infrastructure to support eVTOL flights. Germany's D3 Technologies aims to create "digital roads" for the new aircraft, using its automation and data communications systems.

Blade Urban Air Mobility does not directly acquire the aircraft used to provide flights for its customers but instead convinces partner operators to make the investment. Now the U.S. group has arranged for eVTOL aircraft developer Wisk Aero to operate and maintain its equipment in what could prove to be the world's first fully autonomous air taxi services. However, the agreement is contingent on several factors, not the least of which is regulatory approval.

Under the Agility Prime program, the U.S. Air Force's Afwerx unit is assessing the suitability of new electric aircraft for a variety of military missions. These include the Alia 250 model being developed by Beta Technologies and also Joby Aviation's eVTOL prototype, both of which are seeking to achieve civil type certification with the FAA by 2024.

Fires caused by electric arcs are a safety concern for electric and hybrid-electric aircraft. With French government funding, Safran's Electrical & Power division is teaming with Pyroalliance to develop technology that could react in a millisecond to guard against this danger. Both companies have extensive experience working with high-voltage aeronautics power systems.

ZeroAvia acknowledged that the accident will disrupt the completion of the HyFlyer 1 project using a six-seater Piper M Series aircraft equipped with its hydrogen propulsion system. However, it is pressing ahead with plans to certify commercial aircraft with between 10 and 50 seats.

Political leaders in both Singapore and Florida have shown support for the integration of eVTOL aircraft into their public transportation networks. These markets are now key focal points for companies that will build and operate the vertiports from which they will operate, but questions remain as to how the competitive landscape for this infrastructure will develop.

ZeroAvia says it is investigating the causes of the unplanned landing of its flying testbed, which may cause some disruption to its intention to evaluate its hydrogen propulsion system for use on larger aircraft. Last month, the company announced plans and new funding to power a 50-seat airliner with hydrogen.

Chinese eVTOL aircraft developer EHang continues to place a strong emphasis on conducting public flight demonstrations and establishing partnerships with communities both in China and Europe. It is unclear when Covid pandemic restrictions will allow plans for flight trials in Austria, Norway, and Spain to resume, but the company has been showing off the EH216 at recent trade fairs and sporting events.

Horizon Aircraft's leadership team will support Astro in developing a trio of eVTOL aircraft designs, including the Cavorite X5, the Elroy, and the Alta. However, Astro is allocating a first-year operating budget of only $1.5 million to support work on the hybrid-electric Cavorite, which is likely to need far higher levels of funding to achieve its projected type certification in 2025.