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Transcend Air V-641 (concept design)

Transcend Air V-641 long-range heavy-lift hybrid-electric VTOL passenger and cargo concept design military aircraft

 

V-641 (concept design)
Transcend Air Corporation
Carlisle, Massachusetts, USA
www.transcend.aero

The Transcend Air Corporation was founded in 2017 in Carlisle, Massachusetts, USA. The company is in the business to design and manufacture a tilt-wing hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) for efficient and low cost military aircraft and for city-to-city advanced air mobility (AAM) travel for the VIP traveler. As the aircraft can takeoff and land on any landing pad, airport tarmac, parking lot or grassy area, the aircraft will whisk the traveler to the destination faster than traditional airport-to-airport flying. Their aircraft can also fly its passengers to their destinations faster than a helicopter, according to the company.

The U.S. Air Force has supported Transcend Air's work with four research and development contracts a United States Air Force AFWERX program. The AFWERX program started in June 2021. The "AF" stands for U. S. Air Force and "WERX" is shorthand for work project. The company made it through three down-select stages to become one of five final contenders for the Pentagon’s High-Speed VTOL Challenge (HSVTOL Challenge). AFWERX's goal is finding aircraft that have jet-like speed, in-flight transition between hover and cruise, increased range and endurance, in-flight refueling capability, flexible payload and more.

The company advocates for an almost full conventional power train for their aircraft and plans to use turbine engines to power the two main tractor propellers. The aircraft is still a hybrid-electric aircraft as there is one electric VTOL propeller in the rear of the fuselage used primarily used to keep the aircraft stable during VTOL flight in any windy condition.

Prototype flight testing
Since 2009, the company has built and flown 17 prototype electric or hybrid-electric VTOL subscale and full scale aircraft and at least 15 of them have had an all electric power source. All prototypes made up to and including 2023 are uncrewed except for the Elytron subscale prototype which holds two people.

Some history of the Garrow Aircraft, Elyton Aircraft and Transcend prototypes:

  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 1. The first VTOL drone design was a made on a napkin in 2009 of a hybrid-electric VTOL passenger aircraft. The concept design was a delta wing with 3 VTOL propellers.
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 2. VTOL drone aircraft.
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 3. VTOL drone with 2 tilt-props, 1 main wing, 1 vertical stabilizer, fixed tricycle wheeled landing gear.
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 4. Delta-wing and canard VTOL with 2 VTOL propellers within the fuselage of the aircraft
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 5. Delta-wing and canard VTOL with 1 VTOL propellers within the fuselage of the aircraft
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 6. VTOL drone with 2 VTOL propellers within the high main wing with 1 pusher propeller in front of the rear conventional tail with fixed tricycle wheeled landing gear.
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 7. VTOL flying-wing fuselage with winglets
  • Garrow Aircraft: Proto 8. VTOL box-wing design, fixed tricycle wheeled landing gear.
  • Elytron Aircraft: Proto 9. Unknown
  • Elytron Aircraft: Proto 10. Unknown
  • Elytron Aircraft: Proto 11: Elytron 2S Proto 11 crewed aircraft
  • Elytron Aircraft: Proto 12. VTOL 2 propeller tiltwing box-wing with fixed tricycle wheeled landing gear
  • Transcend Air Corporation: Proto 13: VTOL open framed fuselage with 2 propellers at the end of the foward main tiltwing with a rear H-tail
  • Transcend Air Corporation: Proto 14: 1/5 subscale Vy 400 (does not weight 350 lb), VTOL tiltwing with H-tail.
  • Transcend Air Corporation: Proto 15: 1/5 subscale Vy 400, first flight September 5, 2018 (does not weight 350 lb) VTOL tiltwing with H-tail and fixed skid landing gear.
  • Transcend Air Corporation: Proto 16: First flight January 19, 2019
  • Transcend Air Corporation: Proto 17: Risk Reduction Test Vehicle (RRTV), first flight July 31, 2023

V-641 long-range heavy-lift hybrid-electric VTOL passenger and cargo concept design military aircraft
The V-641 is a long-range heavy-lift hybrid-electric VTOL passenger and cargo concept design military aircraft that holds a total of 37 people. The aircraft has one pilot and is autonomous capable. The cabin holds 36 people and the intended maximum weight for each person is 365 lb (166 kg). The aircraft can be used for passengers, cargo or both. The V-641 replaces the multi-mission V-22 Osprey tiltrotor military aircraft.

The planned cruise speed is 525 mph (845 km/h), has a predicted range of 3,351 miles (5,393 kilometers) and has a calculated maximum operating altitude of 30,000 feet (9,144 meters). The cabin volume is approximately 4,200 cubic feet and a Humvee fits inside the cargo hold. The empty weight of the aircraft is expected to be 31,600 lb (14,335 kg), with a maximum payload of 25,200 lb (11,435 kg) and has a maximum takeoff weight of 56,800 lb (25,764 kg).

The aircraft has two turbine powered propellers and one electric tailfan propeller. There are four GE turboshaft T408 engines that provide 3,000 shp to power all the aircraft's systems including the one electric tailfan propeller. The GE turboshaft T408 engines are the engines used for the U.S. Marine Corps’ CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopter. The aircraft has one high main tilt-wing and one H-tail. The superstructure of the aircraft is made of carbon fiber composite for high strength to low weight ratio. The aircraft has retractable tricycle wheeled landing gear with dual nose wheels and two rear four wheeled bogies on each side near the middle of the fuselage.

Specifications:

  • Aircraft type: Long-range heavy-lift hybrid-electric VTOL passenger and cargo concept design military aircraft
  • Piloting: 1 pilot and autonomous capable
  • Capacity: 36 people, maximum 365 lb (166 kg) each person
  • Cruise speed: 525 mph (845 km/h)
  • Range: 3,351 m (5,393 km)
  • Maximum operating altitude: 30,000 ft (9,144 m)
  • Empty weight: 31,600 lb (14,335 kg)
  • Maximum payload: 25,200 lb (11,435 kg)
  • Maximum takeoff weight: 56,800 lb (25,764 kg)
  • Cabin volume: ~4,200 cubic feet
  • Propellers: 2 turbine powered propellers, 1 electric tailfan propellers
  • Electric motors: 1 electric motor
  • Power source: 4 GE turboshaft engines T408, 3,000 shp
  • Fuselage: Carbon fiber composite
  • Wings: 1 high main tilt-wing
  • Tail: 1 H-tail
  • Landing gear: Retractable wheeled landing gear, dual nose wheels and a 4-wheel truck main on each side of the rear bogies
  • Safety features: The aircraft can land conventionally if there is a power loss in the tractor propellers. There are also redundancies of critical components in the sub-systems of the aircraft.

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