• 19 Nov 2024 11:26 AM
• 1

eVTOL Leaders Find Uneven Success

By Mike Hirschberg, Director of Strategy
Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024 

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Charles Dickens could have been talking about today. In the past few months, several of the leading developers of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft have found continued success in striving for their vision for advanced air mobility (AAM), but other companies were not so fortunate.

US developers have made advancements, and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has made progress on important regulatory plans (see “Washington Report,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024), but two electric aviation companies in Europe have found misfortune. Rolls-Royce Electrical is shutting down its operations (see “Electric VTOL News,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024) and Lilium has filed for insolvency (see below).

The following represents a summary of recent activities by some of the leading developers of eVTOL aircraft.

Archer Aviation

Archer announced the completion of major financing deals as well as important flight-testing milestones.

On Aug. 22, Archer announced that it had essentially closed its $230M of additional capital raised, announced early that month (see “eVTOL Leaders Deliver,” Vertiflite, Sept/Oct 2024), through a private investment in public equity (PIPE), with participation by longtime strategic investors United Airlines and Stellantis, as well as other institutional investors. “This additional capital gives Archer one of the strongest liquidity positions in its industry and brings Archer’s aggregate funding to over $1.5B to date,” the company said.

The announcement also said that Archer had reached the key terms of an agreement (also previously announced) with Stellantis for the contribution of significant capital in the form of labor and capital expenditures to help scale the manufacturing of Archer’s aircraft, Midnight. This will give Archer the ability to access up to an additional $400M in capital. In early September, Archer announced that it had exceeded 400 flights in the first eight months of 2024, four months earlier than its goal for this year. According to Archer, the flights produce critical data to evaluate and refine aircraft loads, vibrations, performance and handling qualities. The company’s flight testing in Salinas, California, during the late summer focused on five key areas:

• Transition Flights: Continuing to conduct longer-distance and higher-speed transition flights to gather data, extend endurance and ensure maximum safety.
• High-Rate Operations: Increasing per-day flights to simulate the high cadence of Archer’s anticipated commercial operations and test Midnight’s durability.
• Advancing Landing Profiles: Completing a series of hover landings in various wind conditions with different rates of descent and flare heights to expand Midnight’s wind envelope and further optimize its landing profile.
• Enhancing Acoustic Measurement: Conducting a series of hover operations with various microphone arrays to collect supplemental data for the FAA and to further evaluate and tune Midnight’s noise signature.
• Optimizing Control Laws: Regressing through the envelope with a series of optimizations made to the control laws, which will extend Midnight’s endurance.

Beta Technologies

Burlington, Vermont-based Beta Technologies received a $20M multiphase contract to work with the US Health and Human Services (HHS) Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) to develop a pilot program to evaluate next-generation mobility solutions and infrastructure for public health preparedness.

Beta announced in early September that it is installing 22 electric aircraft chargers at locations determined to be important to increasing healthcare and emergency response operations along the US East and Gulf Coasts. New sites had already become operational in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas, with more planned for the following months.

Rural areas experience high morbidity and mortality rates due to lack of access to local health care, Beta said. Air ambulances serve more than half a million patients every year and continue to play an increasingly important role as rural hospitals continue to close in the US. This partnership between HHS and Beta to establish infrastructure for electric transportation is another step in addressing healthcare and emergency response preparedness.

Beta is planning its market entry to begin with cargo, logistics and medical missions, planned for as early as 2025, before moving into the passenger sector. The company provided an update on the passenger configuration of its Alia aircraft, which is being refined as its cargo configuration advances through certification. The cabin configurations are being further refined for both its A250 eVTOL and its CX300 electric conventional takeoff and landing (eCTOL) versions of Alia.

The company’s passenger aircraft is designed to be able to comfortably carry up to five passengers plus a pilot, and the cabin has enough volume to accommodate airline carry-on and standard checked luggage. “Optimized for volume and range, similar to BETA’s other platform configurations, this aircraft is designed to carry out a variety of passenger missions, including intra-city and regional transport routes,” the company said.

Beta’s design team has been working closely with legacy operators to develop an aircraft that will serve its diverse passenger-focused customer base, incorporating design feedback and features from various regional and tourism operators to optimize for comfort, safety and service. A photo of the cabin mockup is shown.

When the FAA released its regulations on powered-lift pilot certification and operations in October (see “Washington Report,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024), Beta highlighted that FAA test pilots went through Alia ground school and flew the aircraft with a Beta test pilot in qualitative evaluation flights last year. The company released a photo of the cockpit (shown), illustrating that it is one of the only eVTOL aircraft designed with dual controls.

Meanwhile, Beta’s 188,000-ft² (16,700-m²) manufacturing line has begun assembling the first test aircraft for its production configuration (shown).

EHang Holdings Limited

In late August, EHang released its second-quarter 2024 financial results. Highlights included sales and deliveries of 49 aircraft in its EH216 family, which includes the standard EH216-S model for passenger transportation, EH216-F model for aerial firefighting and EH216-L model for aerial logistics. This was an increase from 26 aircraft the previous quarter. Total revenues reached a record of ¥102M million (USD $14M), while its adjusted net income was ¥1.2M (USD $0.2M), compared to an adjusted net loss in the previous quarter. EHang’s other progress during the second quarter was covered last issue (see “eVTOL Leaders Deliver,” Vertiflite, Sept/Oct 2024).

The past several months saw the Guangzhou, China-headquartered company exhibiting and demonstrating its EH216 around the world. Engagements included Brazil, Canada, Egypt, Italy, demonstrations in multiple cities in Japan, Switzerland, the Middle East, and of course, multiple cities across China.

On Oct. 15, EHang participated in the reception of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the People's Republic of China in Abu Dhabi. “EHang's flagship product, the EH216-S [shown at the event], captivated over 300 attendees, including government officials and business leaders,” the company said. The event also highlighted EHang's growing presence in the UAE. In April 2024, EHang entered a strategic partnership with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Multi Level Group (MLG) to drive the development of eVTOL aircraft in the UAE, the Middle East and Africa.

Recent progress with EHang was also covered elsewhere in this issue (see “China eVTOL Aircraft Round-Up,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024).

Eve Air Mobility

Eve, a subsidiary of Embraer, announced on Oct. 15 that it had secured a R$500M (USD$88M) loan agreement with Brazil’s National Development Bank (BNDES) to help fund the development of the company’s eVTOL aircraft production facility in Taubaté, in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. “This financing will be instrumental in setting up our eVTOL manufacturing facility, which will be not only the first of its kind in Brazil but also powered by clean, renewable energy, aligned with our commitment to sustainability,” said Johann Bordais, CEO of Eve. This recent financing follows the 2022 approval of a USD $92.5M million line of credit from BNDES to support Eve’s eVTOL development program.

“The financing reinforces the commitment of President Lula’s government to support innovative projects in Brazilian industry, such as air mobility, which uses high technological intensity,” explained BNDES President Aloizio Mercadante.

With an eventual total expected output of up to 480 aircraft per year, Eve, a subsidiary of Embraer, plans to expand the site’s production capacity on a modular basis, with four equally sized modules of 120 aircraft per year. “This will provide for a disciplined, capital-efficient investment approach as the market grows,” the company stated.

“Eve boasts the industry’s largest backlog with letters of intent (LOI) for 2,900 eVTOLs from 30 customers in 13 countries,” the company stated, “representing a potential USD $14.5 billion in sales revenue.” Beyond the aircraft, Eve has non-binding contracts with 14 of these customers for service and operations — representing approximately 1,100 aircraft and a potential revenue of $1.2B during the first five years of operation.

At the MRO Europe exhibition in Barcelona in mid-October, the company announced the launch of its Eve TechCare aftermarket services portfolio. Eve called the service “a pioneer all-in-one suite of solutions designed to streamline [eVTOL] operations by providing the industry’s most comprehensive services, expert customer support, and cutting-edge operational solutions.”

Meanwhile, Eve is advancing the development of its first full-scale prototype, which was officially unveiled on July 21 (shown). The company is conducting “a series of comprehensive tests with the prototype aimed to evaluate every aspect of the aircraft’s operation and performance, from flight capabilities to safety features.”

Joby Aviation

Over the past two months, Santa Cruz, California-based Joby has announced a number of steps towards maturation and certification of its air taxi (the second production prototype N541JX is shown).

Joby acquired the autonomy division of Xwing in June, which had focused on fixed-wing aircraft. Joby announced at the end of August that it had “demonstrated autonomous logistics aircraft operations in an evolving mission environment” through its partnership with the US Air Force during the “Agile Flag 24-3” military exercise. The Joby autonomy team flew a fully autonomous Cessna 208B Grand Caravan for a total of more than 3,900 miles (nearly 6,300 km) between military bases and public airports across California and Nevada, flying between nine different locations. The Grand Caravan made a fully autonomous taxi, takeoff and landing at each location without requiring any on-the-ground infrastructure. Joby expects the autonomous capabilities to improve safety and benefit both fixed-wing and VTOL applications.

On Sept. 10, Joby announced that it had applied to become the first certified electric air taxi operator in UAE. During the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) inaugural AAM Summit in Montreal, Canada (see “ICAO AAM 2024 Symposium,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024) this week, JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby Aviation, met with the director general of the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), and presented Joby’s Letter of Intent to initiate its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) application. During the panel discussion at the symposium, Bevirt expressed that the company may begin operating its air taxis in the UAE before the United States. The company has a number of agreements and partnerships in place to help establish and scale air taxi services in the UAE.

The company announced on Oct. 2 that Toyota Motor Corporation will invest an additional $500M in Joby to support the certification and commercial production of its air taxi. The investment, which will be made in two equal allotments, will be made in the form of cash for common stock, with the first tranche targeted to close later this year and the second in 2025. This will bring the total investment from Toyota in Joby to $894M.

“Today’s investment builds on nearly seven years of collaboration between our companies,” said Bevirt. Since 2019, Toyota has also been investing time and human resources to share its knowledge of the Toyota Production System via process planning, manufacturing method development and tooling design. Toyota engineers work side-by-side with the Joby team in California, and, in 2023, the two companies signed a long-term agreement for Toyota to supply key powertrain and actuation components for the production of Joby’s aircraft.

Lilium

As this issue was going to press, Lilium posted that it would “have to file for insolvency” of its principal business “under German law and in doing so will apply for self-administration proceedings in Germany.” The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) notification was filed on Oct. 24.

In March/April this year (see “eVTOL Leaders Begin Transitions,” Vertiflite, July/Aug 2024), Lilium began detailed discussions of the potential for guaranteed loans from the German state of Bavaria and the federal government. Lilium hoped for loans of €50M ($53M) each from the state and federal government. The German government then commissioned the federally owned development bank KfW to conduct due diligence on Lilium.

The Bavarian government approved its share in September but, in mid-October, the German parliament’s Budget Committee declined to approve a federal loan, which was a precondition for Bavaria’s loan, as well as private fundraising commitments.

“Our plan was to obtain shareholder investment in a new funding round anchored by a German government-backed loan of €100 million,” Lilium CEO Klaus Roewe said. “We had already conditionally secured additional private capital to complement the KfW loan. However, the Budget Committee was unable to agree on the loan and Bavaria couldn’t do it alone.”

“Lilium’s international competition is receiving grants and loans in the U.S., France, China, Brazil, and the UK,” Lilium noted. “Therefore, German government support was seen by Lilium investors as critical to retain market confidence and potential future investment.”

Lilium said it was also in advanced discussions regarding a French government guarantee of a €219M ($237M) loan to finance a battery factory and an assembly line in southwestern France.

Three aircraft are now in advanced states of assembly. The manufacturers serial number (MSN) 1 is a ground test vehicle, MSN 2 is the piloted flight test aircraft and MSN 3 is a structure test vehicle, required for the extensive testing EASA requires. First flight was expected early in the new year, which would have “unlocked” some of the down-payments held in escrow for production aircraft orders.

“Following the Lilium Jet’s planned first flight in early 2025,” the company stated, “Lilium anticipated receiving predelivery payments and new investment to finance the company into 2026 when the company expected delivery would begin on its current order pipeline consisting of firm orders, reservations, options, and memoranda of understanding for more than 780 Lilium Jets to operators in the U.S., South America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.”

Self-administration, if granted by the court, aims to preserve and continue the business. Management would retain control and would continue operating the business under the supervision of a custodian. “The procedure is often used to initiate investment by new parties or a process to sell the company’s assets and/ or business as a whole. In Germany, the procedure is generally perceived as providing an improved chance for a successful in-court business restructuring,” Lilium stated.

“We deeply regret the insolvency and its consequences for all stakeholders at such a crucial stage of our company’s development,” CEO Klaus Roewe said. “However, while there is no guarantee for success in insolvency proceedings, we hope that the Lilium Jet will get a chance for a fresh start after the self-administration process is completed.”

Meanwhile, technical development had been progressing. In late August, Lilium announced that it had successfully completed the first phase of integration testing of the Lilium Jet’s electrical power system at the company’s purpose-built laboratory, located at Lilium’s headquarters outside of Munich.

On Oct. 1, Lilium announced that it had conducted the first systems power-on test procedure on MSN 1. At power-on, high-voltage (900 V) is applied to the aircraft and converted to supply the low-voltage electrical and avionics systems, including cockpit display, flight controls, communication, navigation and surveillance systems.

And on Oct. 23, Lilium had announced that GE Aerospace was partnering with the company for flight safety. “The two companies are bringing together their respective flight data and analytics platforms to build scalable flight data management solutions that inform the right safety standards and guidelines for eVTOL operators,” the press release stated.

If Lilium Jets are fielded, GE’s Event Measurement System platform will be a critical digital component of Lilium’s comprehensive aftermarket offering “POWER-ON” to provide safe, efficient and customer-centric solutions. Lilium customers will have access to a range of digital services to support their daily operations with critical insights and actionable data.

Vertical Aerospace

On Sept. 12, Bristol, England-based Vertical Aerospace completed Phase 1 of piloted testing with its second VX4 prototype. This phase included tethered flights, ground taxi testing and high-powered ground runs with a pilot on board. The VX4 prototype conducted multiple piloted tethered flights and ground runs, across 20 piloted test sorties, completing a total of 70 individual test points, the company explained.

Phase 1 testing also included ground vibration testing (GVT), powertrain testing, dynamic testing, propeller testing and taxi testing at low and high speeds. One of the most important tests successfully carried out included simulating the failure of one of its electric motors while in piloted tethered flight, to ensure the aircraft responded properly and continued to be safe while in flight.

The company will begin piloted untethered thrust-borne testing, as soon as it receives permission from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The company noted that the VX4 went from its first powered ground test to “wheels up” in just one week.

In mid-September, Vertical also released its first half-year 2024 financial results. As of June 30, Vertical had cash and cash equivalents of £67M (USD $84M), but as of the date of the report, that had dwindled to approximately £48M ($63M) on hand. The report stated that its “2024 capital plan continues to remain on track, with net cash outflows from operations in the second half of the year expected to be between £40M to £45M.” Vertical will “need to raise capital to fund its future operations and remain as a going concern. Vertical intends to do so and are in discussions regarding potential third party investment.”

More details on recent progress with Vertical was covered elsewhere in this issue (see “Q&A with Stuart Simpson, CEO, Vertical Aerospace,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024).

Meanwhile, the company received the 2024 Shaping the Future Award from the UK-government-funded Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI). Vertical won the award for its high-performance battery system. Working with Oxford University and University College London’s Electrochemical Innovation Lab, Vertical has produced a battery that is lightweight and able to deliver peak power of 1.4MW and rapidly charge, Vertical explained. The company noted that earlier in the year it was awarded an £8M (USD $10M) UK government grant from ATI for its next-generation propeller development.

Volocopter

On Sept. 2, Bruchsal, Germany-based Volocopter announced a series of leadership changes. The company’s Board of Advisors said it had accepted CEO Dirk Hoke’s request to step down at the end of February 2025. In addition, Dr. Dieter Zetsche was appointed chairman of the Advisory Board (see “Leadership Moves,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2024), which will be responsible for finding a replacement for Hoke. Dr. Zhihao Xu — CEO of Geely Technology Group, part of Chinese automotive giant Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd. — also joined the Advisory Board.

“Over the past two years, [Hoke] has succeeded in stabilizing the company technologically and financially despite a difficult investment market environment. Important entrepreneurial structures and processes have been established in the startup that will continue to shape the company in the future,” the announcement read. The company is completing development of its VoloCity eVTOL product, which is undergoing certification review by the European Union Aviation Safety Authority (EASA).

“Until the end of February 2025, I will devote all my energy to achieving EASA certification and thus creating an essential building block for the future of Volocopter," said Hoke.

The company also highlighted a number of activities related to certification and operations. Flight test footage showed the VoloCity flying and rotating in a tight turn radius at low speeds. “Maneuvering in an urban environment requires eVTOLs to be nimble, stable, and safe to avoid infrastructure obstacles along the flight path and perform precise takeoff and landing in the tighter confines of a small vertiport or clearing,” the company said.

In preparation for downwash testing for EASA, Volocopter conducted a flight test campaign (shown) in compliance with the agency’s MOC VTOL.2400 regulation. “The aircraft hovered close to the ground in a remotely piloted configuration while anemometers measured airflow speed from four fixed cardinal positions,” the company stated in early October.

Wisk Aero

Over the past few months, Wisk has posted information online about its development progress, including for its Generation 6 prototype.

Wisk noted at the end of August that its surrogate Bell 206 helicopter “plays a crucial role in our development process, “allowing us to seamlessly integrate our advanced autonomy suite and assess individual avionic components in a flight environment that will mirror our Gen 6 aircraft.” The testing provides insights into how the sensors and computer platforms communicate and interact. “As we bring our systems online, the helicopter will be key in confirming vehicle orientation and perceiving surroundings — ensuring that our eVTOL meets or exceeds the highest aviation safety standards.”

On Sept. 10, FastCompany.com named Wisk to its Best Workplaces for Innovators 2024 list in the “Automotive and Transportation” category. Wisk noted that over its history, it had earned 280+ patents, developed 6 generations of aircraft, completed 1,750+ test flights and built a global team of 800+ across the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, and Poland.

In a blog post on Sept. 17, Wisk highlighted its Integrated Boom Cross Flow Test. This test evaluates a boom with a front tilting propeller and a rear lift-only propeller with a wing segment in both hovering and low-speed forward flight conditions. The forward propeller and the wing could tilt to simulate conversions to forward flight and different angles of attack for each. The test evaluates the interactions and structural integration in flight-like conditions to gather performance data on stability, control and overall efficiency, the company said.

Wisk released photos and a video of the assembly the company’s “Gen 6” fuselage assembly (shown) on Oct. 4. The company posted, “Designing and building a safe bonded composite structure is a complex endeavor that requires coordination of multiple teams. From design, materials, manufacturing engineering, tooling, supply chain, quality, to manufacturing technicians, every role plays a critical part.”

On Oct. 15, Wisk announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Airservices Australia. This government-owned organization provides air traffic management and associated services in Australia. The MoU lays the foundation for incorporating safe, autonomous air taxi travel into Australia’s airspace.

Airservices Australia is taking a leading role in transforming airspace management to accommodate the future of aviation, including AAM. Wisk Australia Pty., Ltd. was recently established to lead Wisk’s entry-into-service (EIS) in Australia and will lead the engagement with Airservices.