(XPeng) Heitech Skimmer

Heitech Skimmer 
Heitech Aeronautics & Astronautics 
China

Based in China, Zhao Deli has created an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) flying hoverbike, called the Magic Cloud. From when he was young, Zhao always liked electronics, science and had the dream to fly. In 2008, Zhao by chance, saw a group of people flying remote-controlled model aircraft which sparked his interest in flying again. He began to work on, study and learn to make model aircraft, including drones and helicopters and learned how to make them fly.

After making electric drones for several years (including a hybrid-electric drone), Zhao started his own company in 2010 to sell drones. The company created five different drone models to manufacture and sell. Then around 2016, Zhao read about a hover surfboard from Canada, this information was the catalyst to for him to begin building an eVTOL hoverbike for one passenger.

He started out funding himself with his own money, by selling his home and borrowing money from friends. He has now attracted investors to keep his research going. After his drone company went bankrupt, Zhao Deli attracted an investment of $2.8 million (USD), all from Chinese venture capitalists.

The Heitech Skimmer eVTOL concept design is a sporty one passenger open cockpit multicopter appears to have been made for Urban Air Mobility (UAM), air racing and off road adventures. The cockpit has solid sides with an open air cockpit, allowing the pilot to be in the open air when flying. The aircraft has four booms with two propellers on each end of the booms for vertical and forward flight, for a grand total of eight propellers for the entire aircraft.

It looks like instruments are viewed using a glass cockpit, literally a piece of glass which apparently can be seen through when the aircraft is off. The aircraft has some distinguishing features such as open cockpit with solid sides but with no canopy, and has long retractable booms for the propellers allowing the aircraft to be parked in a standard parking space or stored efficiently. The skid type landing gear reduces the complexity of the aircraft and both sides of the rear skids have a wide sloping step for ease of entry and exit by the pilot. The aircraft has large fixed airliner winglet-styled wings attached on both sides of the rear of the fuselage and an inverted U tail is fixed above the rear of the aircraft.

As of 2020, Heitech was aquired by XPeng and now exists as a branch of the company.

Specifications:

• Aircraft type: eVTOL hoverbike multicopter
• Piloting: 1 person
• Cruise speed: Unknown
• Range: Unknown
• Propellers: 8 propellers on booms, the booms are retractable for ease of storage or to fit inside a standard parking space
• Electric Motors: 8 electric motors
• Fuselage: Light weight material
• Cockpit: The cockpit is enclosed but there is no canopy. Cockpit has an open canopy
• Rear wing: A large fixed winglet-styled wing attached on both sides of the rear of the fuselage
• Tail: Inverted U tail
• Landing gear: Fixed skid type landing gear. Has a wide sloping step on the rear of the landing skids for ease of entry and exit.
• Safety Features: Distributed Electric Propulsion (DEP), provides safety through redundancy for its passengers and/or cargo. DEP means having multiple propellers and motors on the aircraft so if one or more motors or propellers fail, the other working motors and propellers can safely land the aircraft. Has protective shielding on the outer sides of the propellers to protect the aircraft propellers, objects and people near the propellers while flying, in VTOL mode or on the ground. Wide sloping step for ease of entry and exit.

Resources:

• XPeng website
• Hey XPeng YouTube Channel
• Article: Chinese man sells his house to fund flying motorcycle, Global Times, July 25, 2018
• Article: Chinese Inventor Develops Working Drone Motorcycle, The Drive, July 28, 2018
• Article: Chinese Inventor Plans To Take His “Hoverbike” On A 3,400 Mi Journey, Mike Shouts, July 30, 2018
• Video: Chinese man makes "flying scooter", South China Morning Post, Aug. 18, 2018 
• Article: Chinese Inventor Builds Hoverbike and Becomes a Superhero, RideApart, Aug. 20, 2018
• Video: Chinese inventor Zhao Deli's flying scooter how to make it fly step by step., Alvan Tang, Oct. 5, 2018 
• Video: Flying motorbike Multi-Rotor Manned Aircraft from China, Alvan Tang, Apr. 2, 2019 
• Article: Man realizes flight fantasy of childhood, China.org.cn, May 9, 2019 
• Video: China's Hover Bike - Zhao Deli, Abacus News, Oct. 10, 2019
• Article: HeiTech eVTOLs Discovered, eVTOL News, Aug. 28, 2020
• Article: Chinese electric car start-up Xpeng shows off new flying vehicle, CNBC, Sept. 26, 2020 
• Article: China's Rising eVTOL Industry, Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2021