Although the previous Lilium Jet full-scale demonstrators were not flown extensively — and neither transitioned to fully wingborne flight — Lilium has conducted extensive analysis and ground testing that supports their technology.
In the timeline of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developments, Lilium GmbH first came to widespread public attention in April 2017 with the release of a video of the futuristic, prototype, two-seat Lilium Jet flying around outside the Bavarian capital of Munich, at the Special Airport Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany.
VFS conducted a workforce study early last year (www.vtol.org/workforce) identifying some of the major challenges for the vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) industry and addressed key points in our commentary, “Looking Back: A Perspective on the Future Vertical Workforce,” Vertiflite, July/Aug 2020.
MightyFly, based in California’s San Francisco Bay Area, announced on April 20 that it is developing an autonomous air cargo eVTOL, and had closed a $5.1M seed funding round.
On April 15, Denver, Colorado-based XTI Aircraft Company announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Enterprise Estonia, Estonian Aviation Cluster and the Estonian Aviation Academy (EAVA) to recognize Estonia as a regional mobility hub for the XTI TriFan 600 hybrid-electric eVTOL bizjet.
Ajdovščina, Slovenia-based Pipistrel announced on April 12 that it had partnered with SF Express, one of China’s leading integrated logistics providers, to develop a hybrid-electric eVTOL cargo aircraft, apparently based on Pipistrel’s Nuuva V300 unmanned cargo aircraft that it announced last year.
On April 6, Wisk Aero filed a lawsuit against Archer Aviation, alleging theft of intellectual property and trade secrets.
In March, Fast Company named Joby Aviation to its 2021 list of the World’s Most Innovative Companies, and a Popular Science posting revealed the first clear photo of Joby’s first-generation S4 air taxi technology demonstrator (shown).
As mentioned last issue, Astro Aerospace of Dallas, Texas, announced in February that it would acquire Lindsay, Ontario-based Horizon Aircraft, Inc.
Rolls-Royce Electrical announced on March 9 that it was selected by Bristol, England’s Vertical Aerospace to power its all-electric VA-X4 air taxi (shown); Rolls-Royce acquired Germany-based Siemens’ electric aircraft propulsion systems business unit in 2019.
