FutureFlight

Suzuki releases more funding in equity deal with eVTOL developer SkyDrive, Germany's Fraports backs Lilium's plans for vertiports, ZeroAvia teams with ScottishPower to provide hydrogen fuel at UK airports, and GKN says additive manufacturing will cut component waste by 80 percent.

Supernal has revealed its first full-scale mockup of the eVTOL aircraft it aims to bring to market in 2028. It is showcasing the four-passenger S-A2 aircraft this week at the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, where the company has constructed a vertiport exhibition to give show attendees a taste of the urban air mobility experience. 

Atlantic Aviation, which operates a chain of 100 FBOs at airports across the U.S., has become the latest business aviation support provider to install electric charging stations. The company has partnered with eVTOL aircraft developer Beta Technologies to install its "charge cube" equipment in at least four locations to support air taxi services and other electric aviation requirements.

As part of Airbus’s ongoing efforts to advance automation in commercial aviation, the aircraft manufacturer’s Acubed innovation unit in Silicon Valley has now collected data on more than 100 airports across the U.S. The massive data collection campaign, which began in California in 2019 and expanded to the eastern U.S. last year, will help to enable autonomous flight through artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, according to the Europe-based aerospace group. 

Clay Lacy Aviation and Joby Aviation are to install what they say will be the first charging unit for eVTOL air taxis in Southern California. The Global Electric Charging System (GEACS) developed by Joby will form part of Clay Lacy’s $100 million redevelopment of its FBO at John Wayne Airport in Orange County which is due to be completed by mid-2025.

Harsh weather can limit the ability of uncrewed air vehicles to operate, but WaveAerospace says its hybrid-electric Huntress Turbojet will be able to fly in wind conditions of up to Force 10. The U.S. start-up is preparing to start flight testing in June with an aircraft it says will fly at up to around 300 mph in roles that could include search and rescue and critical logistics flights.

East African operators Safarilink and Yellow Wings Air Services have agreed to convert their Cessna Caravan turboprop singles to the electric propulsion system being developed by Surf Air Mobility and partners. In memorandums of understanding announced on January 4, the companies did not commit to buying a specific amount of the conversions, but each currently operates between four and 15 of the nine-passenger Caravans.

New Amphibious Aviation Conference to be Launched in March

EHang this week reported what it says were the first commercial demonstration flights in its EH216-S autonomous eVTOL aircraft. The flights were conducted during demonstration events held in the Chinese cities of Guangzhou and Hefei attended by officials from local government agencies and the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), as well as business people, media, and some members of the public.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China issued an airworthiness certificate for the two-seat autonomous eVTOL vehicle, confirming that EHang has manufactured the first example to conform with the type certificate issued in October.