eVTOL i skuddet presentert av Aviation Today

 

Air Medical eVTOLs, Airbus Future Trainer, 5G.mil Welcome back to the Future of Aerospace, where each week we dive into a few of the trends rapidly defining the next generation of aircraft and aerial markets. Last week was packed full of major satellite company announcements and advancements. These include a new North American in-flight connectivity service being launched by Inmarsat and Hughes, an Intelsat processing unit is providing artificial intelligence and machine learning onboard the PhiSat-1 satellite and Kratos Defense & Security Solutions has rolled out a new software platform, “OpenSpace,” composed of virtual products that enable satellite operators and Ground-as-a-Service (GSaaS) providers to design their own fully software-defined, dynamic ground systems. THIS WEEK: Advocates for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are looking towards emergency response as an early use case for this new technology to help build public acceptance as a precursor to widespread use as a transportation alternative in urban and suburban communities. (Electrification and Sustainability) Recent successful demonstrations of data sharing between different types of weapon systems and a contract win to develop a new space-based tactical communications system that will eventually help tie together troops and weapons systems in the sea, air, and land domains show how fifth-generation wireless technology is coming to the battlespace for network-centric warfare, Lockheed Martin President and CEO James Taiclet said on Oct. 20. (Connectivity) Airbus revealed a trainer jet program for the Spanish Air Force this month that will replace the current F-5 advanced training aircraft fleet with growth potential to be the future trainer aircraft of the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and New Generation Fighter (NGF), according to a press document on the aircraft. It will also create industry investment in the Spanish defense and private sectors. (Public Policy) Thanks for reading. —The Future of Aerospace Team

 

Will eVTOLs Find a Place in Emergency Response?

 

 

Image: Urban Aeronautics Advocates for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are looking towards emergency response as an early use case for this new technology to help build public acceptance as a precursor to widespread use as a transportation alternative in urban and suburban communities. Though eVTOLs will be limited by the energy density of batteries and designed more for efficiency in cruise flight than hover, they may have numerous useful applications in the world of emergency response. Several companies around the globe are currently working on eVTOL vehicle designs with major potential to perform emergency air medical operations. Here, we break down some of the latest developments from those companies with perspectives from executives and leadership.

 

Jump Aero, founded by former Terrafugia leader Carl Dietrich, aims to reduce first response times with an eVTOL designed specifically for air medical operations that can reach speeds over 200 mph and land safely on a suburban street. Dietrich: “Based on the data we have seen, it appears that Jump Aero's products could eventually help first responders save thousands of lives per year in the United States. In certain time-critical emergencies such as cardiac arrest, one minute of reduction in response time can represent over $1,000 in long-term care savings.” Ambular, a project launched by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in 2018, is working on an air medical eVTOL design to be open-sourced upon completion. A presentation on Ambular’s progress at the 2020 virtual Farnborough International Airshow proposed using four sets of rotors placed around a central cockpit to autonomously transport one patient and one paramedic — both to the scene and back to a medical facility. The next phase of design anticipates accommodating two paramedics and one patient. Dufour Aerospace, based in Switzerland and founded by a number of software and aerospace industry veterans, revealed this summer its unmanned eVTOL prototype with more than 500 flight tests completed. The aircraft, which bears resemblance to Bye Aerospace’s electric trainer aircraft but with four propellers on a tilting wing, is a precursor to a larger manned project with five to seven seats that will be designed for the medical transport market. Urban Aeronautics, based in Israel, is working on an entirely different VTOL aircraft for urban medical response, more akin to a flying car than an electric helicopter. Rafi Yoeli, the company’s founder, has been working on a compact, wingless design using an internal ducted rotor since 2001, resulting in an unmanned design, Cormorant, and a six-seat manned version dubbed CityHawk. Yoeli believes CityHawk’s road-transportable, street-legal design without external rotors makes it ideal for emergency operations, particularly within a city.

 

Heidi Williams, director of air traffic services and infrastructure at the National Business Aviation Association, sees eVTOLs as providing new tools for emergency providers that are likely to help save lives under the right circumstances. “I think eVTOL aircraft are going to play in a lot of those spaces,” Williams said. “There’s going to be an opportunity in a rural environment where the roadway structure maybe isn’t as built up as it is in the city … Not every circumstance is going to require an eVTOL that maybe has a limited battery life or can’t hover. But there are going to be scenarios where it makes a lot more sense.” Read more on eVTOL potential for air medical ops.