HAI/ROBB COHEN PHOTOGRAPHY


eVTOL 101 By Jenna Scafuri T


HE NEWEST PLAYER IN TRANSPORTATION TECH- nology is the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and its projected use for air taxis and urban air mobility (UAM). At HAI HELI-EXPO 2019 in Atlanta, eVTOL appeared


in everything from panel discussions and education sessions to proto- types on the show floor. One panel discussion, Te Electric VTOL Revolution, hosted by the Vertical Flight Society, brought together leaders in eVTOL to discuss where the industry stands now and where it’s headed in the future.


Why eVTOL and UAM? eVTOL describes any type of aircraft that takes off and lands vertically using electric or hybrid-electric propulsion. Tis covers everything from ultralights and personal air vehicles to future air-taxi models such


46 ROTOR SPRING 2019


as the Bell Nexus. eVTOLs could be used in many missions that helicopters already


do, from package delivery to disaster relief. But eVTOL designers and manufacturers point to the technology’s advantages over traditional aircraft: eVTOLs could be more cost-efficient to operate and could carry increased payloads, all while reducing noise. UAM is only one future application for those vehicles. Like most


new technologies, UAM is being developed to solve a problem: “If I live in a city with impossible automobile traffic that can’t support more ground transportation infrastructure, can I bring my daily commute to the sky to get around quickly and efficiently?”


Why Now? “eVTOL has exciting potential that we think will revolutionize not only vertical flight, but society as a whole,” says Mike Hirschberg, executive


What you need to know about the “future of vertical flight.”


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