ARC Aerosystems e-Starling Jet (concept design)

e-Starling Jet
ARC Aerosystems
Cranfield, Bedfordshire, United Kingdom
www.arcaerosystems.com

Founded in 2017, ARC Aerosystems (formerly Samad Aerospace) is a technology start-up company set out to design and manufacture safe, eco-friendly, scalable, luxury electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) and hybrid-electric VTOL passenger aircraft for advanced air mobility (AAM) and for air cargo. Since its founding, the company has generated over 10,000 pages of technical reports as a result of more than 100,000 engineering work hours.The company is based in the United Kingdom and is financed by venture capital and is looking for additional funding. (All images: ARC Aerosystems)

The company has designed multiple models of eVTOL and hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft to help shape the future with eco-friendly door-to-door urban air transportation. The ultimate goal of the aircraft is to give back time to the air traveler compared to lengthy time it takes today to fly with conventional air travel.

As of 2023, ARC Aerosystems has acquired the following patent and design rights:

• Utility: Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) propulsion system on blended wing body (BWB) passenger aircraft (European Patent Corporation Treaty).
• Design: Vehicle configuration of two-in-one air-and-ground vehicle unit (United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office).
• Utility: Power management (battery packs) on two-in-one air-and-ground vehicle unit (United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office).

The e-Starling Jet is an all-electric VTOL business concept design jet that will be flown autonomously and carry seven passengers on regional and short-haul flights. The estimated cruise speed 482 km/h (300 mph) and has a range of 644 km (400 miles). In two of the pictures on this web page, there are three electric ducted fans (EDFs) and two fan-in-wings which makes a total of five electric propellers. Two other pictures show the aircraft as having two propellers in the rear of the aircraft and two fan-in-wing propellers.

The aircraft has one high-main wing and there's either a standard T-tail or V-tail.  Three jet engines are fixed above the wings and tail. For VTOL the fuselage opens sliding hatches for two fixed vertical propellers and the engines fixed on the wings extend cowlings that angle 90 degrees down for four VTOL points of thrust. Should the jet slip below stall speed it will automatically adjust to hover. The vehicle will carry up to seven people. While ARC Aerosystems is working toward autonomous flight they also plan for a fly-by-the-wire system and an operator with 20 hours of emergency training to be at the controls. Two alternate hybrid-electric configurations, the Starling and UAV Starling, are also being developed by ARC Aerosystems.

The half-scale eCTOL demonstrator, with a length of 6.7 m (22 ft) and an eight meter (26 ft) wingspan, used a trailing-edge coaxial propeller on each side of the fuselage. The Starling will be able to use vertiports and small landing areas. The company is targeting the business and luxury travel markets.

On Nov. 30, 2020, ARC Aerosystems announced the successful electric conventional takeoff and landing (eCTOL) first flight of its 1/2-scale e-Starling prototype. The aircraft flew at 145 km/h (90 mph) for five minutes in an eCTOL configuration, setting the groundwork for eVTOL tests flights in 2021. According to a press release, the company plans on performing a test of the aircraft's autonomous flight capabilities following this successful eCTOL test.

At the time, sales were expected by 2024 with a cost of about 10 million (USD) dollars.

Specifications:

• Aircraft type: eVTOL passenger concept design aircraft
• Pilots: Autonomous
• Passengers: 7 passengers
• Cruise speed: 482 km/h (300 mph)
• Range: 644 km (400 miles)
• Propellers: 5 propellers (or 4 depending upon the version of the aircraft)
• Electric motors: 5 electric motors (or 4 depending upon the version of the aircraft)
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
• Wing: 1 main high-wing
• Tail assembly: Either a standard T-tail or a V-tail
• Landing gear: Retractable tricycle wheeled landing gear

During the 15th Electric Aircraft Symposium held in July 2021, an aircraft very similar to the e-Starling named the "Starling Transport" was briefly detailed by Dr. Seyed Mohseni, CEO. Design similarities between the two aircraft suggest the possibility that the "Transport" is actually a renamed and slightly altered e-Starling. The aircraft's specifications are listed below.

Transport Specifications:

• Aircraft type: eVTOL aircraft
• Pilots: 1 pilot
• Passengers: 5 passengers
• Cruise speed: 482 km/h (300 mph)
• Range: 1288 km (800 miles)
• Ceiling: 7620 m (25,000 ft)
• Propellers: 4 propellers
• Electric motors: 4 electric motors
• Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
• Wing: 1 main high-wing
• Tail assembly: Either a standard T-tail or a V-tail
• Landing gear: Retractable tricycle wheeled landing gear

Related Aircraft:

• ARC Aerosystems C-150 (production model)
• ARC Aerosystems C-600 (production model)
• ARC Aerosystems HUMA (concept design)
• ARC Aerosystems Linx P9
• ARC Aerosystems Q-Starling (concept design)
• ARC Aerosystems Starling Cargo (concept design)
• ARC Aerosystems Starling Cargo S5M (demonstrator)
• ARC Aerosystems Starling Jet (concept design)
• ARC Aerosystems UAV Starling (concept design)

Company Insights:

• Crunchbase
• Pitchbook
• Tracxn

Resources:

• ARC Aerosystems website
• ARC Aerosystems Facebook
• ARC Aerosystems Twitter
• ARC Aerosystems YouTube Channel
• ARC Aerosystems Instagram
• ARC Aerosystems LinkedIn
• Article: Starling Jet Comes in Three Sizes, ARC Aerosystems, date unknown
• Video: Starling Jet: World's first hybrid-electric VTOL business jet, BBC Three Counties Radio, Feb. 20, 2018
• Article: Samad Aerospace Intros VTOL Business Aircraft Concept, AIN Online, Feb. 5, 2018
• Article: VTOL Hopeful Makes EBACE Debut, AIN Online, May 30, 2018
• Article: Samad Aerospace targets passenger flight with electric e-Starling, Aerospace America, July 17, 2018
• Video: Samad Aerospace's half scaled e-Starling CTOL test, ARC Aerosystems, Nov. 30, 2020