• 24 May 2018 11:20 AM
• 0

NASA Supports eCTOL and eVTOL UAM

NASA is broadening its support to Urban Air Mobility through several initiatives, as outlined in a May 7, 2018 NASA news story:

The goal, known as Urban Air Mobility (UAM), is a safe and efficient air transportation system where everything from small package delivery drones to passenger-carrying air taxis operate over populated areas, from small towns to the largest cities....

Another area where NASA’s strengths already are assisting UAM air vehicle development is with its electric propulsion research.

Hybrid-electric or all-electric-powered vertical takeoff and landing air vehicles are likely to dominate UAM operations over cities thanks to their significantly reduced, or even zero emissions, as well as relatively quiet operation.

Earlier this month, NASA made available to the entire UAM community extensive technical data gathered from its still-ongoing X-57 Maxwell project, which is an all-electric propulsion experimental research airplane.

The shared data comes from more than 25 publicly available documents written by the X-57 team, who already are working with regulators on how best to approach certifying their new ideas for flight – all of which can be helpful to the UAM community.