FutureFlight

According to Dan Schwinn, president and CEO of Florida-based avionics group Avidyne, developers of electric aircraft face unique challenges regarding factors such as motor and battery instrumentation and management. He believes his company can bring solutions to the table, and it is already partnered with two pioneers, Beta Technologies and VoltAero.

While the new concepts such as simplified vehicle operations have clear potential to support the unprecedented scale-up in flight operations envisaged by advanced air mobility pioneers, initial services are likely to be based on a conservative foundation of existing safety practices. FutureFlight surveyed some of the front runners among eVTOL aircraft developers to gauge their preparations for launching operations.

In 2024, UPS will start integrating Beta Technologies' all-electric Alia 250 eVTOL aircraft into its fleet. The package-delivery giant—which is Beta's third customer, following earlier commitments from United Therapeutics and the U.S. Air Force—will also use the company's battery recharging units.

Wisk Aero says that the design for an eVTOL passenger aircraft unveiled by Archer Aviation in February 2021 was based on a design for which it filed a confidential patent application in January 2020. Its lawsuit seeks an injunction to stop Archer from using its intellectual property.

The U.S. Air Force's AFWERX program has contracted with Transcend Air and Auburn University to develop flight control software that would enable the Vy 400 VTOL aircraft to replace helicopters in military resupply and emergency evacuation missions. This would involve operating just above the terrain contours in "nap of the earth" mode at speeds of up to around 405 mph.

Bell is continuing development work with its Nexus 4X passenger-carrying eVTOL aircraft and the cargo-carrying Autonomous Pod Transport. However, the company has indicated that both designs are still being defined and has not confirmed any timeline for possible service entry.

Pipistrel's selection of more of Honeywell Aerospace's avionics technology follows its choice of the company's new compact fly-by-wire system for the Nuuva V300 unmanned aerial vehicle. Honeywell is pursuing new applications for its flight deck and propulsion systems in the advanced air mobility sector.

France's Occitanie regional government is among the early backers for Aura Aero, a fast-growing small enterprise that is advancing plans for electric and hybrid-electric aircraft. It already holds at least 80 orders for its piston-powered Integral R and S training aircraft, as well as for an all-electric version of these models. Now it is starting to develop a 19-seat regional airliner that it says will plug a gap in the market to serve smaller cities where there is insufficient demand for larger aircraft.

British Airways is among a group of investors supporting a new $24.3 million funding round for hydrogen propulsion pioneer ZeroAvia, which has now raised almost $74 million. The airline has not indicated whether it intends to operate the 50- and 100-seat airliners that ZeroAvia will fit with hydrogen-electric powertrains but says the investment is part of its aim of supporting net-zero carbon emissions on short-haul services by 2050.

Following flight trials with two eVTOL aircraft demonstrators, the CityAirbus and the Vahana, it has been unclear what Airbus's next steps in this field might be. Company CEO Guillaume Faury says the group will keep working on this technology, even though it now feels it may take until later in the 2020s to establish commercial air taxi services.