Important Innovations

Sir Richard Branson Building Flying Taxi Fleet From UK's Vertical Aerospace                                                                Source:  Vertical Aerospace Branson's Plans for Flying Taxis Virgin Atlantic founder Sir Richard Branson is looking to expand his fleet of aircraft and spacecraft.  He is investing in the UK air taxi company Vertical Aerospace and is planning on buying a fleet of their air taxis. The air taxis are a strategic addition to his Virgin Atlantic aircraft and his Virgin Galactic spacecraft.  Branson has entered into a partnership with Vertical Aerospace to purchase 150 flying taxi eVTOLS, which are electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles. Entrepreneur Branson, whose expertise is aviation and aerospace, provides a ringing endorsement to the future of eVTOL, flying taxi travel. Technical Details on the eVTOL VA-X4 The flying taxis that Branson is purchasing are the VA-X4.  Vertical Aerospace was founded and is run by the highly successful, Be

  Aerospace Giant Invests a Further $450 Million in Wisk Aero                                                  Source:  Wisk Aero Autonomous Air Taxi Travel Silicon Valley, California-based air taxi startup Wisk Aero has raised $450 million from Boeing to build an air taxi flee, capable of 10 million flights per year.  Wisk has developed an electric, vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle that is capable of autonomous, pilot-less flying and can carry 2 passengers.  Wisk Aero is owned by Boeing and Google co-founder Larry Page's flying car company Kitty Hawk.  There are more than a dozen, major flying car companies globally.  But what distinguishes Wisk is its focus on autonomous flying vehicles.  The company says that autonomous functionality is being built into every aspect of the design and development of its 5th-generation Wisk Cora eVTOL. Cora Tech Specs Boeing says Cora will be the first autonomous, passenger air taxi certified for flying in the US.  Certification is ta

 Boeing  Invests a Further $450 Million in Wisk Aero                                                  Source:  Wisk Aero Autonomous Air Taxi Travel Silicon Valley, California-based air taxi startup Wisk Aero has raised $450 million from Boeing to build an air taxi flee, capable of 10 million flights per year.  Wisk has developed an electric, vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle that is capable of autonomous, pilot-less flying and can carry 2 passengers.  Wisk Aero is owned by Boeing and Google co-founder Larry Page's flying car company Kitty Hawk.  There are more than a dozen, major flying car companies globally.  But what distinguishes Wisk is its focus on autonomous flying vehicles.  The company says that autonomous functionality is being built into every aspect of the design and development of its 5th-generation Wisk Cora eVTOL. Cora Tech Specs Boeing says Cora will be the first autonomous, passenger air taxi certified for flying in the US.  Certification is targeted fo

  eVTOL Successfully Take-offs, Lands, Transitions to Forward Flight                                                  Source: AutoFlight Chinese Company Seeks Certification to Fly Passengers Shanghai-based aviation company AutoFlight has unveiled a very impressive electric Vertical Take Off & Landing (eVTOL) air taxi.  It's called Prosperity 1.  This new eVTOL has successfully demonstrated vertical takeoffs, the transition to rear propulsion for forward flight and switching back to its top propellers for vertical landings.  It is a significant contender in the rapidly accelerating world of flying taxis.  AutoFlight has a portfolio of successfully launched planes and several eVTOLs, including an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in mass production - the autonomous V50 White Shark. Tech Specs Prosperity 1 is autonomous, electric and very recently demonstrated its technical capabilities during a test flight in China.  It flew at speeds of 123 mph and hit an altitude of nearly 500 feet

  Eve-Senna Air Taxis from Embraer                                             Source:  Embraer New, Sustainable Air Mobility Commutes Starting in Brazil Embraer is one of the world's most innovative aviation companies.  Headquartered in Brazil, it is working on changing forever urban air mobility into a sustainable and affordable new mode of travel.  Embraer's subsidiary Eve Air Mobility is partnering with Senna to develop an F1 inspired air taxi.  It's an eVTOL (electric, vertical takeoff and landing) flying taxi named Eve-Senna.  The first locus of operation is Brazil and Rio de Janero. Rio is one of the world's most congested and busiest cities.  Eve-Senna's main goals are to democratize flying taxis by making travel in them inexpensive and accessible. Another key player in the development project is Helisud Aviation, which is one of Latin America's biggest helicopter providers. Highly Advanced Tech With Senna, the Eve project is hitting new heights.  The eV

  Eve-Senna Air Taxis from Embraer                                             Source:  Embraer New, Sustainable Air Mobility Commutes Starting in Brazil Embraer is one of the world's most innovative aviation companies.  Headquartered in Brazil, it is working on changing forever urban air mobility into a sustainable and affordable new mode of travel.  Embraer's subsidiary Eve Air Mobility is partnering with Senna to develop an F1 inspired air taxi.  It's an eVTOL (electric, vertical takeoff and landing) flying taxi named Eve-Senna.  The first locus of operation is Brazil and Rio de Janero. Rio is one of the world's most congested and busiest cities.  Eve-Senna's main goals are to democratize flying taxis by making travel in them inexpensive and accessible. Another key player in the development project is Helisud Aviation, which is one of Latin America's biggest helicopter providers. Highly Advanced Tech With Senna, the Eve project is hitting new heights.  The eV

  The Zero Emissions Travel Revolution                                                  Source:  Lilium Lilium Acing Tests Flights and Going Public  Powered by 36 electric engines, Germany based Lilium's 5th generation demonstrator eVTOL is a sterling example of the zero emissions travel revolution that is rapidly emerging.  Lilium continues to go through test flights which demonstrate the aircraft's ability to very quietly vertically take off, fly, hover and vertically land like a helicopter.  The 36 electric engines are stacked across the wings.  The e-engines are powered by 72 battery systems inside the aircraft.  Lilium has a top cruising speed of 175 mph at an altitude of 10,000 feet with a range of more than 155 miles on a charge.  Its first market for commercial operations is Florida with 14 cities as hubs for air taxi service within the next 3 to 4 years. Room for 7 & Getting Production Ready The current, 5th generation demonstrator Lilium has 7 seats.  The sound cr

  The Zero Emissions Travel Revolution                                                  Source:  Lilium Lilium Acing Tests Flights and Going Public  Powered by 36 electric engines, Germany based Lilium's 5th generation demonstrator eVTOL is a sterling example of the zero emissions travel revolution that is rapidly emerging.  Lilium continues to go through test flights which demonstrate the aircraft's ability to very quietly vertically take off, fly, hover and vertically land like a helicopter.  The 36 electric engines are stacked across the wings.  The e-engines are powered by 72 battery module systems inside the aircraft.  Lilium has a top cruising speed of 175 mph at an altitude of 10,000 feet with a range of more than 155 miles on a charge.  Its first market for commercial operations is Florida with 14 cities as hubs for air taxi service within the next 3 to 4 years.  Flying taxis or eVTOLs are a disruptive, zero emissions, urban air mobility type of vehicle that are about t

  Joby Aviation's e-VTOL Being Tested by NASA                                                                      Source:  Joby and NASA NASA's Ultimate Goal:  Safely Accelerate Use of Air Taxis NASA has started testing a future air taxi for use to ferry passengers and cargo, particularly in big, congested cities.  The vehicle is a six rotor, all electric e-VTOL (electric, vertical take off and landing vehicle) developed by startup company Joby Aviation of California.  This particular aircraft is designed to be as quiet as possible in order to operate in busy cities and relieve traffic congestion without a lot of noise pollution. Joby plans to put its flying taxis into commercial operation in 2024.  NASA's ultimate goal in initiating its testing program is to safely accelerate the use of flying taxis in the US. Air Noise Pollution Tests The tests are being conducted by NASA's Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) group, which has launched a national campaign for the development

  Joby Aviation Going Public on NYSE        Source:  Joby Aviation Big Tech Investors Behind the e-VTOL Company Electric aviation company Joby Aviation is going public on the NYSE.  It is using a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to do so.   The northern California company will come out of the box with a valuation of $6.6 billion.  Joby is a very hot "future of mobility" company.  It recently acquired Uber's flying taxi division.  Joby is backed by Toyota, Intel and Jet Blue.  And, the SPAC company it is merging with - Reinvent Technology - is run by Linked-In cofounder Reid Hoffman and Zynga founder Marc Pincus.  As part of the SPAC deal, Joby will get $1.6 billion cash. Joby is readying its flying taxis for scaled-up takeoffs in partnership with Toyota. Awesome eVTOL Technology Joby was founded by inventor JoeBen Bevirt.  He's developed an e-VTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicle for use as an air taxi.  The vehicle can c

Airspeeder Will Race Its Flying Cars in 2020 Source:  Airspeeder South Australia Startup Before the end of 2020, Australian startup Airspeeder will host a full fledge flying car race in the remote South Australian Outback.  Airspeeder has developed two flying cars.  They are electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles eVTOLs or flying taxis.  But these flying electric vehicles are specifically designed for air racing.  The reason:  vehicle racing has driven technology innovation. Manned and Unmanned EVs Airspeeder has invented the MK 4 which has a maximum speed of 130 km/h (81 mph), weighs 120 KG (265 pounds) and seats a single pilot.  The EV is powered by a 500 kw battery, has the same power to weight ratio as a fighter jet and provides 12 minutes flight time per battery.  The company also has created the unmanned MK 2 which has a maximum speed of 60 km/h (37 mph), weighs 80 KG (176 pounds) and provides 7 minutes of flight time. 2020 - Perfect Year for Flying Cars

Prototype Helipad and Base Source:  BART Technologies Empowering Electric Flying Burlington, Vermont based BETA Technologies is developing an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. It also has invented a fascinating piece of infrastructure for the future of flying air taxis, flying cars, drones and electric planes.  It's a prototype helipad and rapid recharge station. The design of the structure is modular and the concept is unique. Burlington International Airport A prototype structure has been built at Burlington International Airport.  It can recharge a 6-seat electric passenger plane,  which is what BETA is building, in an hour.  The structure offers lounges and other accomodations for the crew and can also serve as a way station for medical and other supplies during an emergency. Green Power BETA uses a combination of  electric power and solar charging to recharge the electric f

CEO Says Fleets of Electric Air Taxis Deployed in 2022 Source:  Volocopter Electric VTOL Volocopter CEO Florian Reuter says fleets of Volocopter air taxis will be flying in 2022.  The flying taxi is the world's 1st, manned, fully electric VTOL (vertical landing and takeoff vehicle).  It's fully sustainable, drone like technology that has been successfully flown in demonstrations in a number of global cities.  Volocopter is headquartered in Germany.  Reuter made the announcement in Davos during the 2020 World Economic Forum. 100% Electric with Zero Emissions and VoloPorts According to Volocopter, their air taxi meets international certifications to be as safe as an airliner.  It's 100% electric powered and emissions free.  The drone like VTOL can carry two passengers.  And, it's quiet with the 18 electric powered rotors on one level.  Volocopter has a whole ecosystem to support their air taxis.  Specifically VoloPorts to connect the VTOLs with inner city tr