News

Asia Air Taxi Alignments

• 03 Mar 2020 10:33 AM
• 0

Bell announced on Feb. 11 that it had signed an MOU with Sumitomo Corporation and Japan Airlines Co., Ltd., to “explore Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) and to foster the required infrastructure and regulatory environment.” The collaboration is intended to “inform the development of an on-demand air mobility ecosystem utilizing Bell’s air mobility solutions including Bell’s Air Taxi, the Nexus 4EX, in Japan” (see “Urban Air Mobility Steals the Show at CES 2020,” Vertiflite, March/April 2020, pg. 62). In addition to the air taxi, which is part of the Uber Elevate initiative, Bell is also developing its own UAM software, called AerOS (an app to request UAM flight service) and a comprehensive fleet management system (including aircraft health and charge status), and will run their own aerial ride sharing program

ASX with Spirit

• 03 Mar 2020 10:32 AM
• 0

Global aircraft design and manufacturing company Spirit AeroSystems and Airspace Experience Technologies (ASX) announced on Feb. 17 that they had signed a memorandum of understanding and a definitive agreement to “cooperate on creation of affordable, certified all-electric” VTOL aircraft.

Urban Air Taxis Underway — UAM at Heli-Expo

• 02 Mar 2020 02:44 PM
• 0

VFS members are well aware of the “Electric VTOL Revolution” that has been underway for several years, with more than 250 electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft concepts on the VFS website, www.eVTOL.news. Most of the helicopter OEMs, most visibly Airbus Helicopters and Bell, have been considering eVTOL and urban air mobility (UAM) options for the future.

Terrafugia Flies Subscale TF-2A

• 02 Mar 2020 12:20 PM
• 1

In mid-December 2019, Terrafugia, a subsidiary of Geely Technology Group, successfully conducted its first test flight of the TF-2A sub-scale demonstrator. After acquiring the US-based Terrafugia flying car company in 2017, Geely established a research and development team in China, beginning on the TF-2A design in 2019. The subscale TF-2A is all-electric and comprised mainly of composite materials. It has a wingspan of 14.8 ft (4.5 m), a maximum take-off weight of 132 lb (60 kg), and a cruising speed of about 62 mph (100 km/h).

CityAirbus Flies Free

• 02 Mar 2020 12:18 PM
• 0

Airbus Helicopters tweeted a video on Jan. 10 of its CityAirbus demonstrator, stating, “The fully electric #VTOL started untethered hover testing in Donauwörth at the end of 2019” (though not specifying a date).

The ((Quiet)) Electric VTOL Revolution

• 02 Mar 2020 09:06 AM
• 0

Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft promise to be quieter than helicopters, but how much quieter? And how will that shape the future of urban air mobility (UAM)?

These are some of the questions that were addressed at “The ((Quiet)) Electric VTOL Revolution,” the third annual VFS eVTOL panel at the annual Helicopter Association International (HAI) Heli-Expo 2020 trade show. 

US Air Force Moves to Boost eVTOL Development

• 20 Feb 2020 03:20 PM
• 0

The Air Force marked the 116th anniversary of the Dec. 17, 1903, Wright brothers flight at Kitty Hawk by issuing a request for information (RFI) aimed at helping foster a new powered flight revolution — electric or hybrid electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft — eventually self-flying.

FAA: "Helicopter Safety – Time to Think Outside the Box"

• 18 Feb 2020 09:03 PM
• 2

Good morning, everyone.

By now, everyone is aware of the tragedy that happened Sunday morning, only 50 miles northwest of this convention center.

I speak for all of us at the FAA when I say that we are saddened by this accident and the loss of so many lives, and our hearts go out to the family and friends of those onboard.

NASA Holds Supply Chain Workshop

• 05 Feb 2020 05:02 PM
• 0

The NASA Aeronautics Research Institute (NARI) held a Sustainable Aerospace Supply Chain and Manufacturing Workshop, Feb. 4-5, 2020, at NASA Ames Research Center, in Mountain View, California.

VFS Executive Director Mike Hirschberg presented on "The Future of Vertical Flight: How Do We Get There?" [pdf slides, 8 MB]. More information about the workshop is available at https://nari.arc.nasa.gov/aerosupplychain

VFS @ Heli-Expo 2020

• 24 Jan 2020 05:01 PM
• 0

Anaheim, California, Jan. 24, 2020 — The Vertical Flight Society, the world’s leading non-profit organization working to advance vertical flight, announces today its activities at Heli-Expo to highlight advanced new military and civil vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft. Heli-Expo 2020 is hosted by the Helicopter Association International (HAI) and is being held Jan. 28–30, 2020, in the Anaheim Convention Center, in Anaheim, California.