FutureFlight

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has granted Design Organization Approval to eVTOL aircraft developer Volocopter.

EmbraerX has studied Sao Paulo, the world's busiest city for helicopters, and concluded that ultimately the air traffic environment has to consist of automated aircraft in an automated system, if it is to scale to the levels envisages with the safety that regulators will require. Helping to drive that could be the fact the aviation industry is already struggling to train enough pilots and air traffic controllers for regular operations, while also facing high forecast growth and pressure to modernise and improve.

Frederic Laugere from the UK Civil Aviation Authority outlines how the agency is supporting innovation in aviation and has created three services as part of its Innovation Services unit: the Gateway, Sandbox and Regulatory laboratories.

Attendees at the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) session during Foresight Aerospace's conference in London on December 5 seemed to agree that issues such as regulation and insurance and air traffic management failings, could stall an industry bursting to bring manned electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft into operation. 

Skyports has raised $6.9 million in a Series A funding round that will allow it to rent multiple city-center sites worldwide to build vertiport ground facilities for eVTOL aircraft.

Jaunt AIr Mobility, developer of the ROSA eVTOL aircraft, and international aerospace group BAE Systems have signed an agreement to develop energy management systems.

Moog announced on December 4 that it has completed its acquisition of Workhorse’s SureFly electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) program for $4 million. Workhorse and Moog also have established a 50:50 joint venture to complete development of the HorseFly unmanned cargo delivery drone.

Boeing and eVTOL start-up Kitty Hawk are building on a partnership they launched in late June 2019 by creating a joint venture called Wisk, which will take on the task of bring the Cora eVTOL to market.

Government-based UK Research and Innovation expects up to 200 companies to participate in its Future Flight Challenge, which is a collaboration platform for developing and support electric and autonomous aircraft.

By reducing the size and weight of their new health and usage monitoring system, GPMS are looking to bring the benefits of the safety technology to eVTOL aircraft.