Moog SureFly

SureFly
Moog Inc.
Elma, New York, USA
www.moog.com

Founded in 1951, Moog Inc., an American-based multi-national company recording revenues in excess of 2 billion USD in 2018 with over 10,000 employees. Moog is a designer and manufacturer of electric, electro-hydraulic and hydraulic motion controls and systems for applications in aerospace, defense, industrial and medical devices. The company also purchased the Workhorse SureFly electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) commercial aircraft for Urban Air Mobility (UAM) for $5 million USD in 2019. The company announced in 2021, that is it also upgrading its SureFly eVTOL for military use and is involved with the U.S. Air Force's AFWERX program.

Workhorse announced the program in a press release on May 31, 2017, stating: "It features a gas combustion engine generating electricity and a parallel battery pack offering a redundant backup power source, eliminates the need for long battery charging periods between flights. SureFly is designed to be easy to operate, and is expected to be capable of carrying two passengers up to 70 miles." The SureFly is expected to sell for less than $200,000 each.

The aircraft was displayed at the Paris Air Show in June 2017 and AirVenture in July 2017, as well as CES 2018 in January 2018. Its registered as an experimental aircraft with the FAA under N834LW.

At the time, the Workhorse website stated "SureFly is a personal helicopter/eVTOL aircraft designed for safe and easy flight. With eight independent motors each driving a single carbon fiber propeller, a backup battery power system, and a ballistic parachute to safely land in the event of emergency, the SureFly provides unparalleled safety for a personal aircraft."

The first flight of the Workhorse (now Moog) SureFly "electric helicopter" was made on Monday, April 30, 2018 at the Cincinnati Municipal Lunken Airport in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. The flight was a 10-second untethered hover. This was the world's first manned flight of a hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft. Initially, the concept was planned to fly at CES2018, after tether testing in Jan. 2018. An accident occurred on April 11, 2018, when the SureFly rolled onto its side during a demonstration, luckily not injuring the test pilot.

The company further announced that on June 1, 2018, the US Federal Aviation Administration had accepted the company’s application for type certification. The company notes "the SureFly design appears to be the first hybrid-electric eVTOL multi-copter to reach this important milestone with the FAA." The company posted a video of flight testing on Aug. 6, 2018 of the SureFly conducting higher hovers from testing on Aug. 2, 2018.

On Dec. 11, 2019, Moog announced the acquisition of the SureFly technology. Moog also announced in 2019 they will be using a SureFly aircraft demonstrator to show the U.S. military how autonomous eVTOL aircraft can be used for resupply and casualty evacuation missions.

Specifications:

• Vertical take off and landing
• Electric Driven Props: 2 props per arm, counter-rotating. Eight motors, each driving a single propeller
• Piloted Vehicle designed to carry pilot and passenger or pilot and cargo
• Gasoline Piston Engine drives dual generators to provide power to prop motors
• Dual Lithium Battery Packs: 7.5 kWh each, used for emergency landing power (5 minutes) in the event the gasoline generator fails
• Full computer and electrical system redundancy
• Ballistic Parachute
• Fuselage and props are carbon fiber for durability and light weight
• Fix Prop Pitch and no transitional parts (No wings, tail, tilt rotor or tilt wings) for simplicity and safety
• Onboard GPS navigation system
• Static ports and a heated pitot tube for altimeter and air speed measurements
• Detect-and-avoid sensors
• Maximum flight distance: 70 miles
• 70 mph (60 kt or 113 km/h) top speed
• One hour of flight time available per tank of gasoline
• Flight ceiling of 4,000 ft (1200 m).
• Curb Weight: 1100 lb. (500 kg)
• Max Takeoff Weight: 1500 lb (680 kg)
• Maximum payload: 400 pounds
• Battery backup system with max theoretical battery power of 20.8 amp hours
• 200 hp (150 kW) at 6,000 RPM aviation gasoline engine (premium unleaded 90 octane gasoline)

Company Insights:

• Pitchbook
• Crunchbase
• MarketWatch

Resources:

• Moog SureFly website
• Moog Facebook
• Moog Twitter
• Moog YouTube Channel
• Moog Instagram
• Moog LinkedIn
• FAA Certification: N834LW
• Article: Reinventing the Helicopter After 78 Years: Workhorse Group Inc. Will Unveil SureFly™ Concept at Paris Air Show June 19, PR Newswire, May 31, 2017
• Photo walk-around, Paris Air Show, Vertical Flight Society photos by Ian Frain, June 22, 2017
• Article: Interest is High for Workhorse Personal Electric Helicopter, Trucks.com, Sept. 26, 2017
• Article: Innovation in the Parisian Summer: Paris Air Show 2017 Report, Vertiflite, Sept/Oct 2017
• Video: Workhorse SureFly Octocopter, AVweb, Nov. 9, 2017
• Photo gallery: CES2018, Vertical Flight Society, Jan. 2018
• Video: Workhorse SureFly CES 2018 test, Ay boo, Jan. 9, 2018
• Article: Aviation Comes to the Consumer at CES 2018, Electric VTOL News, Feb. 21, 2018
• Article: The eVTOL is in the Details, Electric VTOL News, Feb. 21, 2018
• Article: Incident Workhouse SureFly Manned Rotor, ASN Wikibase, Apr. 11, 2018
• Video: SureFly Has Taken Flight, Workhorse Group, May 3, 2018
• Article: "SureFly Electric Helicopter Achieves First Flight", Aviation Week, May 4, 2018
• Article: SureFly Hybrid Electric Manned Multi-Copter Enters FAA Type Certification Process, Workhorse, July 6, 2018
• Article: Moog Acquires SureFly® Technology, Moog, Dec. 11, 2019
• Article: Moog builds on benefits of SureFly acquisition, Flight Global, Feb. 11, 2020
• Article: AFWERX Agility Prime partner, Moog Aircraft Group, creates prototype eVTOL vehicle, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Sept. 14, 2021
• Article: Moog Inc. Announces Participation In AFWERX's Agility Prime Initiative, Moog, Sept. 2021
• Article: Moog teams up with US Air Force to help advance SureFly eVTOL, eVTOL Magazine, Sept. 24, 2021