Xpeng Motors presented their urban air mobility (UAM) vision and the eVTOL designs developed by their subsidiary HT Aero which Xpeng acquired last year. This is the first time that Xpeng Auto presented its UAM and eVTOL in Europe.
the European Customer Insights and Operations Director Dr. You Jiaxi of Xpeng Auto spoke at the show
The founder and CEO of HT Aero, Mr. Deli Zhao, through pre-recorded video, and the European Customer Insights and Operations Director Dr. You Jiaxi of Xpeng Auto on-site delivered a speech “Exploring the Future of Travel” on the first day of European Rotors, introducing the solution for future three-dimensional travel envisioned by Xpeng Auto, X2 two-seat eVTOL developed by HT Aero and the design concept of their next generation eVTOL being developed by HT Aero.
In the speech Dr. You revealed that Xpeng Auto plan to begin test flying X2 eVTOL in Europe beginning in the first half of next year.
X2 two-seat eVTOL developed by HT Aero, the UAM subsidiary of Xpeng Auto
On November 8 Embraer held a grand conference on sustainable aviation development planning. The President and CEO of Embraer Commercial Aircraft announced Embraer’s sustainable aviation plan and unveiled four matching aircraft design concepts.The overall goal is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2025.
According to Embraer’s plan, in 2030 all models produced by Embraer can use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) reducing carbon emissions by 25% and helping the global transportation aviation industry to achieve full net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
To this end, Embraer plans to take a two-step technological development path: First, in the short to medium term, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is the main development goal to use existing infrastructure and aircraft engines and avilable technology as much as possible. The long-term plan is to take hydrogen as the aviation fuel.
Accordingly Embraer tested the full-electric demonstrator this year, and plan to test the hydrogen fuel cell demonstrator in 2025, to fly the eVTOL prototype in 2026, and by 2030 Embraer plan to have existing models to be fully compatible with 100% SAF and plan to launch new turboprop models that are fully compatible with SAF. The new hydrogen turboprop model will be tested in 2045, and the new hydrogen line of aircraft will be launched in 2050.
Embraer has cooperated with Orlando Airport in the United States to build SAF supply facilities, and cooperated with a number of SAF companies to develop and industrialize SAF, and cooperated with engine supplier Pratt & Whitney to make the existing engines compatible with SAF.
Embraer believes that Embraer’s advantage over electric aviation startups is its mature and systematic research and development capabilities, and that its advantage over other OEMs is its cost structure and relatively more flexible corporate structure, especially in turboprop area.
Embraer will not only pay attention to urban air mobility (UAM) and eVTOL, but also will attache great importance to the development of regional air mobility (RAM). Embraer believe that RAM can make full use of the existing infrastructure, and the new aircraft models developed by Embraer will be suitable for RAM use case.
ENERGIA HYBRID: Technology Readiness – 2030 Range – 500 nm Seats – 9 pax Noise – 60% lower External NoiseENERGIA ELECTRIC: Technology Readiness – 2035 Range – 200 nm Seats – 9 pax Emissions – Zero CO2 Noise – 80% lower External NoiseENERGIA H2 FUEL CELL: Technology Readiness – 2035 Range – 200nm Seats – 19 pax Emissions – Zero CO2 Noise – 70% lower External NoiseENERGIA H2 GAS TURBINE: Technology Readiness – 2040 Range – 350 – 500nm Seats – 35-50 pax Emissions – Zero CO2 Noise – 60% lower External Noise
On November 9 Hyundai Motor Group announced the name of its urban air mobility (UAM) division: Supernal. The UAM division is based in Washington DC, US and is headed by Jaiwon Shin, the former NASA deputy adminstrator.
Hyundai Motor Group stepped into the eVTOL and UAM arena in 2019 when it set up the UAM division and unveiled its first eVTOL concept vehicle S-A1 at the CES in 2019, and became an OEM partner with Uber Elevate.
Hyundai Motor Group target 2028 for the launch of its UAM service. At Supernal website it states that Hyundai will focus on four elements in their eVTOL and UAM development: safety, noise, affordability and “people first”.
Today at the Xpeng Technology Day, Mr.He Xiaopeng the chairman and CEO of Xpeng Auto, one of the leading Chinese electric car manufacturer, presented an eVTOL flying car design. This concept can take off and land vertically as well as can drive on the road, aka a true “flying car”.
Xpeng’s aviation subsidiary HT Aero, which Xpeng acquired last year, will be in charge of this flying car development.
The design will have two folding rotors with both collective and cyclic controls. in road mode the flying car will be 4.98m long and 2m wide while in flight mode it will be 12.2m long and 7m wide. The flying car will have near 1.9 ton maximum takeoff and landing weight.
Xpeng target 2024 for mass production and 100 million RMB price tag (156.6k USD)
Aura Aero and Amedeo formed a strategic partnership agreement and a letter of intent for 200 19-seat electric regional aircraft called “ERA” that Aura Aero is developing as a clean sheet design.
Gabriella Lapidus, Chief Commercial Officer at Amedeo, said, “We are very pleased to be partnered with AURA AERO in leading such an important climate supporting initiative for the future. For Amedeo, sustainable aviation is more than aspirational and we are committed and focused on partnerships in sustainable aviation that will define the next three decades in aerospace. We have seen various concepts showcased in the market and AURA AERO has an edge with the skillset, talent and design that we stand behind. Their prototype, INTEGRAL, is the first stepping stone to a larger electrical regional aircraft.”
AURA AERO is based in Toulouse at the heart of the aeronautic hub. It is a three-year-old startup developing design and manufacturing processes for fully digital electrical aircraft, initially starting with 19 pax and a cargo version, while already flying an aerobatic capable training aircraft that will go electrical in 2022, becoming the trainer of choice for airline flight schools and military ab-initio and advanced programs.
Amedeo is a global leading aircraft Asset Manager and principal investor in aircraft leasing. The team has more than 140 years of combined experience managing an extensive portfolio of aircraft on behalf of various investors. Amedeo has financed a wide spectrum of aircraft types with long-term relationships with OEMs, airlines and financiers. The Managament team has a proven track record of successfully spearheading new technologies across various assett classes.
The Chinese eVTOL startup Huitian Aerotech. annouced that they successfully completed over $500 million USD series A financing with over $ 1billions valuation led by IDG, Xpeng Motor, 5Y Capital and joined by Sequioa, GGV, GL Ventures, Eastern Bell Capital & YF Capital. This is the largest investment in eVTOL and electric aviation in general in Asia so as of today.
Huitian was acquired by the Chinese electric car company Xpeng Motors and the founder of Xpeng Motors himself Mr.He Xiaopeng in 2020. Xpeng Motors is one of the largest and one of the most promising electric car companies in China. Xpeng Motors is listed at NASDAQ and has a market cap of about 35 billions USD.
Huitian have been developing eVTOL for several years and have test flown several models of single-seat and two-seat eVTOL. Their latest eVTOL product is X2 two-seat as shown here
Today at the Airbus Summit event with subject “Pioneering Sustainable Aerospace” Airbus helicopter revealed the new design of CityAirbus “NextGen”. Airbus expect to start test flight of the prototype in 2023 and obtain the type certificate from EASA in 2025.
The new CityAirbus has wing surfaces for extra lift during cruise and eight propellors in fixed positions for lift and cruise. Noticeably the head of Airbus UAM Joerg Muller said in the discussion that the CityAirbus NextGen has “no movable surfaces and no tilting parts.” This can possibly mean that the aircraft simply leans forward at a specific angel of attack in cruising with the help of the eight lift propellors and without any propulsion dedicated to horizontal flight.
CityAirbus NextGen will have four seats, will have a range of 80 kilometers and cruise speed of 120 km/h.
The reply of the 1st day of Airbus Summit can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7WdCIkBQJs
On September 15 the German eVTOL startup Lilium went initial public offering (IPO) at NASDAQ. It was the third eVTOL company going IPO after Ehang in December 2019 and Joby in August this year, and was the second eVTOL company going IPO through the fast-track SPAC approach.
Lilium obtained $584 million in cash through IPO, an amount much less than the $830 million projection when it announced the IPO plan in March mainly because 65% of the SPAC company’s shareholders chose to redempt their stock and not participate in the IPO transaction. Lilium was valued at $3.3 billion in this IPO.
The Chinese eVTOL startup Volant Aerotech today revealed the investors of their first round of fundraising in amount of “millions USD”: Shunwei Capital founded by Xiaomi’s founder Mr.Lei Jun in 2011 managing total of near 3 billions USD and 2 billions RMB assets, and Ventech China, a French VC managing more than 400 millions Euro.
Volant Aerotech was founded in Shanghai in 2021 by a group of aviation veterans from COMAC (the Chinese equivalent of Boeing and Airbus) as well as the Chinese subsidiaries of Airbus, GE, Honeywell and Collins. The company revealed very little about their eVTOL design except an obscure image of the design concept. The company intend to test fly a sub-scale prototype by the end of this year.
a rendering image of Volant’s eVTOL design concept
The Chinese eVTOL startup TCab Tech (时的科技）revealed their fundraising situation and their five-seat eVTOL design E20.
TCab Tech was founded in Shanghai in May 2021 with a group of veterans with the background of both conventional aviation industry and eVTOL.
TCab metaphors ‘time cab’, named with the mission to offer affordable and time-efficient means of transportation to the general public, and above all, having everyone enjoys the moment of flight.
The founder and CEO of the company, Yon Wui NG, was previously Vice General Manager of Geely Terrafugia responsible for the eVTOL aircraft named TF-2A. Before Geely Terrafugia, Yon spent 10 years with Airbus China Engineering Center whereby one of his positions was Head of Engineering for the engineering center.
TCab Tech securied close to 10 millions USD within one month from their Seed and Seed+ fundraising. The Seed investment comes from BlueRun Ventures, whereas the Seed+ investment comes from Decent Capital. BlueRun Ventures is a pronounced venture capital which has supported more than 150 startups since its China-based establishment in 2005. Decent Capital was founded by Tencent co-founder Jason Zeng, it is a leading venture capital focusing on advanced technology, industrialized innovation, and web-based investments.
According to the press, the eVTOL aircraft is designed to compliance with EASA and CAAC airworthiness requirements amid EASA has published SC-VTOL while the team is exploring certification basis for passenger-carrying eVTOL with CAAC.
E20 has a tilt-rotor configuration. Noticing from the photos released, it has fixed landing gear, two wing leading-edge extended struts for accommodating its stowable two-bladed lift rotors, and a pair of distinctive dorsa-fins on its rear tilt-nacelles.
The company says in the press release that in comparison of multicopter and compound wing (seperate rotors for lift and cruise) configuration,tilt-rotor can achieve more effective cruise flight and thus longer range which is very important for eVTOL constrained with current battery technology.
E20 has seagull high wing to raise the position of the wings so that passengers can have ingress and egressget of the cabin more safely and conveniently. The airframe will be built with carbon fiber composite materials to achieve lightweight with high structural strength. E20 will embed no single point of failure in the flight control design.
E20 will have a maximum payload of 450kg, five seats (one for the pilot, four for passengers), 200kg range and 260km/h cruising speed.
According to the press, the eVTOL aircraft is designed to compliance with EASA and CAAC airworthiness requirements amid EASA has published SC-VTOL while the team is exploring certification basis for passenger-carrying eVTOL with CAAC. The media release also indicates that the E20 has a wingspan equivalent to the diameter of a small helicopter’s rotor, permitting the eVTOL aircraft to make use of the smallest helipad infrastructures on the existing highrises.
While there are overwhelming European and American air taxi startups, there have been rather limited Chinese counterparts. Majority of Chinese companies focus on drone rather than air taxi application. With TCab Tech breaking the ice with their fundraising, we expect to see more Chinese advanced air mobility startups to unveil soon. Stay tuned.
