POWERTRAIN
The sky’s the limit
Debuting in April in Newbury Park, California, the Skai from Alaka’i Technologies is a novel fl ying machine described by its creators as an “electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle.” Engineered in
collaboration with BMW’s Designworks, it features six electric motors with a 400 mile, four-hour fl ying range. Top speed is 118mph. The fi rst models will be piloted, but future models are set to have an autonomous option. Up to fi ve passengers can
be accommodated, with an airframe parachute in case of in-fl ight power loss.
areas, the San Francisco Bay Area, and in Sacramento. Instead of selling them, Honda has chosen to lease at US$379 per month for 36 months with a US$2,878 down payment. As it’s California, customers are eligible for a US$5,000 rebate. Honda has invested heavily in
California’s hydrogen refuelling network, spending more than us$14 million. There are now nearly 40 retail hydrogen stations across the state, and the company claims two
The pilot interface is simplifi ed, with fl y-by- light fi bre optics for EMI and lighting. It’s just started the FAA certifi cation process.
Alternatively the payload is 1,000 pounds. Redundancy is designed
into everything. As well as the rotors and fuel cells, there is a Triple Redundant Autopilot System.
thirds of its sales will be EVs of one sort or another by the year 2030. Although fuel cells may or may not be the future, CARB is also keeping its fi nger on the pulse of the present. In May it released the 2018 report into the use of alternative fuels by more conventional engines. Executive offi cer Richard Corey says, “Renewable and biodiesel, renewable natural gas, ethanol and electricity are all seeing growth under the Low Carbon Fuel Standard. Californians have the widest variety of cleaner low-carbon vehicles
available anywhere in the country. The LCFS is catalysing investments in these cleaner alternative fuels, providing consumers with more choices, and reducing emissions of toxic pollutants and greenhouse gases. These are key reasons why other states and nations are establishing similar programmes.” The report states that renewable liquid fuel displaced over 568 million gallons of diesel in 2018. From the start of the project in 2011 almost 3.3 billion gallons of petroleum diesel have been displaced by cleaner alternatives. ■
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