2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Japanese “flying car” developer SkyDrive has started building the first prototype of its&nbsp;three-seat SD-05 eVTOL aircraft. On March 7, the company announced it has started assembling&nbsp;the first parts in a joint operation with automotive manufacturer Suzuki Motor Corporation, through a subsidiary called <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-10-12/skydrive-and-suzuki-establish-evtol-aircraft-manufacturing-subsidiary">Sky Works</a>. Suzuki is providing space at its factory in Iwata City in Japan’s Shizuoka prefecture and according to SkyDrive, the site will have the capacity to assemble up to 100 aircraft per year.
“This facility allows us to produce high-quality eVTOLs efficiently and effectively, ensuring we meet the needs of our customers,” said Sky Works president Nobuo Kishi.&nbsp;
SkyDrive aims to achieve provisional airworthiness approval for the SD-05 aircraft in time for the <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-05-20/skyports-aims-provide-vertiport-japans-osaka-kansai-world-expo">2025 Osaka World Expo</a>, where it plans to conduct public flight demonstrations. The company is not disclosing initial production rates or the number of prototypes it aims to manufacture&nbsp;before certification. A SkyDrive spokesperson told AIN that&nbsp;“our initial focus is to build an aircraft for Expo in order to acquire an appropriate authorization/permit to fly.”
The company is working to obtain a <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-05-03/japanese-regulator-approves-type-certification-basis-skydrives-personal">type certificate</a> from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau and expects to have the vehicle in service by 2026 when it will launch full-scale serial production. SkyDrive also plans to certify the aircraft with the U.S. FAA, and it has signed provisional sales agreements with operators in other Asian markets, including <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-07-21/skydrive-reports-more-provisional-evtol-aircraft-sales-vietnam-and-south">Vietnam</a>.
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<div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blockmediaimagefield-caption">
 
 
 
 <div class="field field--name-field-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">SkyDrive employees prepare the Iwata City manufacturing facility for the launch of SD-05 production. (Photo: SkyDrive)</div>
 
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<figcaption>SkyDrive employees prepare the Iwata City manufacturing facility for the launch of SD-05 production. (Photo: SkyDrive)</figcaption>
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The first prototypes that come off the production line in Iwata City will be used for the SD-05 flight test campaign. Although the three-seat SD-05 model is not yet flight-proven, the company has been flying its full-scale SD-03 model since 2020. It expects to begin flying the first SD-05 prototype sometime this year, the spokesperson told AIN.
The battery-powered SD-05 aircraft is a multicopter with 12 electric motors mounted to an overhead boom assembly. It is designed to carry a pilot plus two passengers up to 15 kilometers (9 miles) on a single charge, with a maximum cruise speed of 100 kph (62 mph).
Eventually SkyDrive aims to introduce an autonomous version of the aircraft that would free up space for one additional passenger in place of the on-board pilot, but it doesn’t foresee that happening until the 2030s.&nbsp;
While SkyDrive’s eVTOL is primarily intended for commercial air taxi and aerial tourism operations, the company has begun accepting pre-orders from <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-13/skydrive-signs-first-private-use-preorder-sd-05-evtol-aircraft">private customers</a>. It is also exploring emergency medical applications for the aircraft.
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Science & Technology Editor

Hanneke Weitering

SkyDrive Launches Production of SD-05 eVTOL Prototype

Japanese eVTOL aircraft developer SkyDrive is looking to make early inroads into India’s advanced air mobility (AAM) market through new public and private-sector partnerships. During the Gujarat Global Summit 2024 event that closed on January 13, the company signed collaboration agreements with the engineering and technology group Cyient and the government of the Indian state of Gujarat.
Gujarat’s Department of Science and Technology will work with SkyDrive to develop the ecosystem needed to launch eVTOL air services in the state by 2027. Government officials will also support feasibility studies focused on creating AAM businesses in Gujarat, which is the political power base of Indian Prime Minister Narendra.
“We would work closely together with the public and private sectors [in Gujarat] to provide solutions for issues, such as mobility emissions and urban congestion,” said SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa.
Under a memorandum of understanding signed on January 12, Cyrient will support SkyDrive’s efforts to bring its three-seat eVTOL aircraft to market by 2028. Initially, the company will assist with tasks such as creating the technical publication manual for the all-electric vehicle, which is expected to be used for flights of up to just 15 miles. 
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 <div class="field field--name-field-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Left to right: Cyrient founder and chairman BVR Reddy, Cyient CEO Karthikeyan Natarajan, and SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa signed a collaboration agreement at the Indian company's headquarters in Hyderabad. (Image: SkyDrive)</div>
 
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<figcaption>Left to right: Cyrient founder and chairman BVR Reddy, Cyient CEO Karthikeyan Natarajan, and SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa signed a collaboration agreement at the Indian company's headquarters in Hyderabad. (Image: SkyDrive)</figcaption>
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Cyrient is based in Hyderabad, which is one of India’s biggest technology hub cities and the capital of the southern state of Telangana. The group’s CEO and executive director, Kathineyan Natarajan, said the partnership could be expanded to cover other aspects of developing new urban mobility initiatives in Indian cities.
According to Cyrient, it supports multiple aerospace and defense companies with engineering services focused on manufacturing and design for aircraft engines, aerostructures, cabin interiors, and avionics. It aims to lower engineering costs and help with supply-chain challenges faced by the industry and is also involved in fields such as modernizing the railway industry with digital technology.
<h3 class="subheading">Multiple AAM Companies Target Indian Market</h3>
<h3 class="subheading">Several other eVTOL aircraft developers—among them&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-11-14/eve-launches-urban-air-mobility-partnerships-dubai-and-india">Eve Air Mobility</a>, <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-11-08/archer-plans-bring-evtol-air-taxi-services-india">Archer</a>, and Jaunt—have previously announced partnerships aimed at developing AAM services in India with companies including&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-03-28/blade-set-expand-indian-charter-flight-network-jaunts-journey-evtol">Blade.</a> There has also been local interest in new hybrid-electric aircraft such as <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-11-01/indian-leasing-group-vman-plans-buy-lytes-skybus-vtol-aircraft">Lyte Aviation's SkyBus</a> and <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-07-05/indian-regional-airline-plans-switch-fleet-electric-seaplanes">Jekta's PHA-ZE 100 </a>electric seaplane.&nbsp;</h3>
Last week, SkyDrive announced that it has secured an unspecified amount of additional capital through a Series C funding round involving a third-party allotment of new shares to its existing backer, Suzuki Motor Corporation. The companies jointly exhibited at the Global Trade Show, which was part of the Gujarat Global Summit 2024 event. At&nbsp;the booth of its partner, Maruti-Suzuki India Limited, the company displayed the SD-05 one-fifth-scale model of its aircraft. 
In October, SkyDrive received funding from the Japanese government. It aims to achieve provisional airworthiness approval in time for the aircraft to be demonstrated during the Osaka World Expo in 2025, with <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-10-23/japanese-government-backs-skydrives-evtol-aircraft-development">full type certification</a> expected to take longer to complete.

Managing Editor

Charles Alcock

SkyDrive Forges Partnerships in India To Pave the Way for Advanced Air Mobility

Japanese eVTOL aircraft developer SkyDrive says a Setouchi Islands tourism association has agreed to purchase an unspecified number of the company’s three-seat SD-05 air taxis for commercial use.&nbsp;
SkyDrive announced Friday that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Okayama Kurashiki Mizushima Aero &amp; Space Industry Cluster Study Group (MASC), in which they pledged to collaborate on the development of commercial eVTOL operations in Japan’s Setouchi Islands, a group of thousands of small islands in the Seto Inland Sea.&nbsp;
MASC is a general incorporated association that aims to promote aerial tourism in the Setouchi Islands. As part of their agreement, MASC and SkyDrive will explore possible suburban air taxi routes as well as other commercial uses for SkyDrive’s eVTOL aircraft.&nbsp;
The fully electric <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-three-seat-evtol-aircraft-suzuki-factory">SkyDrive SD-05</a> aircraft will be capable of transporting two passengers plus one pilot on short flights of up to around 15 kilometers (nine miles) at a maximum cruise speed of about 100 kph (62 mph), according to SkyDrive. It features a multicopter design with 12 electric motor-propeller units mounted to an overhead boom assembly.&nbsp;
SkyDrive aims to have its three-seat SD-05 eVTOL aircraft certified for commercial use in Japan sometime in the next five years, after which it plans to begin mass-producing the vehicle together with <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-10-12/skydrive-and-suzuki-establish-evtol-aircraft-manufacturing-subsidiary">Suzuki</a> at a factory in Iwata City. The company says it expects to have airworthiness certification in hand before the <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-09-16/osaka-expands-advanced-air-mobility-work-skydrive-partnership">Osaka World Expo</a> in 2025, where it plans to conduct public flight demonstrations.&nbsp;
MASC is also working with EHang and has preordered an unspecified number of the Chinese company’s <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-12-23/ehang-announces-launch-order-longer-range-vt-30-evtol-aircraft">VT-30 eVTOL aircraft</a>, a longer-range version of the EH216 model for which it <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-10-13/china-issues-worlds-first-evtol-aircraft-type-certificate-ehangs-eh216-s">recently obtained type certification</a> in China. EHang is also targeting commercial sightseeing applications for its autonomous two-seat vehicles.&nbsp;
SkyDrive has signed provisional sales agreements with operators in countries around the world, including Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and the United States. Following its recent receipt of a <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-10-23/japanese-government-backs-skydrives-evtol-aircraft-development">government research grant</a> worth 12.4 billion yen ($82.7 million), the company has raised at least $27.4 billion yen ($183 million). Its investors include the Suzuki Motor Corp., the Kansai Electric Power Company, Kintetsu Group Holdings, and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.

Japanese eVTOL Developer SkyDrive Partners with Setouchi Islands Tourism Group

The Japanese government has awarded SkyDrive a research grant worth 12.4 billion yen ($82.7 million) as a contribution to the development costs for its three-seat eVTOL aircraft. The country's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry has backed the start-up through its small business innovation research (SBIR) program, which provides funding for start-ups developing advanced technologies that could have a positive impact on society. SkyDrive was nominated for the “next-generation air mobility” award category.&nbsp;
Powered entirely by electric batteries, SkyDrive’s eVTOL aircraft could help to reduce Japan’s overall emissions while alleviating congestion on the ground. The Tokyo-based UAM start-up says the vehicle will be a “suitable and accessible aircraft for family, friends, and commuters with an affordable operating cost per person.” It is intended for short journeys, with an anticipated range of just 15 kilometers (9 miles).
While SkyDrive has previously stated that its aircraft would enter service in 2026, the company now says it expects to achieve type certification for commercial operations “in the next five years,” implying that its service entry could potentially slip to 2028. SkyDrive says the SBIR grant will enable it to “develop the aircraft to fully satisfy market demands with the specification required from operators and be mass-produced.”&nbsp;
The Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-05-03/japanese-regulator-approves-type-certification-basis-skydrives-personal">approved the certification basis</a> for SkyDrive’s two-seat personal eVTOL vehicle in May 2022. Since then, the company has <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-three-seat-evtol-aircraft-suzuki-factory">redesigned the aircraft</a> to include an additional seat, making it more suitable for commercial air taxi operations. SkyDrive aims to gain airworthiness certification for the three-seat model in time to fly it at the Osaka World Expo in 2025.&nbsp;
In addition to some initial <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-13/skydrive-signs-first-private-use-preorder-sd-05-evtol-aircraft">private-use orders</a>, SkyDrive has signed provisional sales agreements with prospective operators around the world, including South Korea, Vietnam, and <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-07-21/skydrive-reports-more-provisional-evtol-aircraft-sales-vietnam-and-south">South Carolina</a>. The company has also secured some orders from clients in Japan.
Since SkyDrive’s founding in 2018, the company has raised at least $27.4 billion yen ($183 million). In its latest Series C funding round, which closed in September 2022, the company reported having raised more than 10 billion yen ($67 million). That funding round was backed by 13 companies, including the Suzuki Motor Corp., the Kansai Electric Power Company, Kintetsu Group Holdings, and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.

Japanese Government Backs SkyDrive's eVTOL Aircraft Development

Japan’s SkyDrive this week confirmed more details about its plan to start series production of its three-seat SD-05 eVTOL aircraft. The start-up announced it has established a subsidiary production company called Sky Works in partnership with Suzuki Motor Corporation, which is providing capacity at its factory in Iwata City to assemble the aircraft at an initial rate of 100 units per year.
The new company was established on September 1, with SkyDrive’s chief technology officer Nobuo Kishi appointed as its president. The move builds on the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-three-seat-evtol-aircraft-suzuki-factory">partnership announced</a> with Suzuki at the Paris Air Show in June.
According to SkyDrive, it will start producing&nbsp;the first SD-05 prototypes in the Spring of 2024 to get the aircraft ready for flight testing. Series production is expected to begin in 2026 when the company aims to complete type certification with&nbsp;the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau. It plans&nbsp;to fly the vehicle for demonstration purposes during the 2025 World Expo in Osaka.
Meanwhile, SkyDrive and Suzuki executives are also now working on possible use cases for the SD-05 aircraft in India. During recent discussions with prospective stakeholders in the country, they pressed the case for eVTOL vehicles to be used to reduce pollution from cars in crowded Indian cities and also for services such as sightseeing flights. The partners indicated they may have an interest in establishing research and development and manufacturing facilities in India.
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 <div class="field field--name-field-media-image field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="lazy" src="/sites/default/files/futureflight/import/3_Discussion%20with%20related%20stakeholders%20in%20India.PNG" width="1118" height="726" alt="SkyDrive executives brief Indian stakeholders on their plans for eVTOL aircraft." title="SkyDrive executives brief Indian stakeholders on how they see the SD-05 eVTOL aircraft being used in India. (Image: SkyDrive)">

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<div class="block block-layout-builder block-field-blockmediaimagefield-caption">
 
 
 
 <div class="field field--name-field-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">SkyDrive executives brief Indian stakeholders on how they see the SD-05 eVTOL aircraft being used in India. (Image: SkyDrive)</div>
 
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<figcaption>SkyDrive executives brief Indian stakeholders on how they see the SD-05 eVTOL aircraft being used in India. (Image: SkyDrive)</figcaption>
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SkyDrive and Suzuki will jointly exhibit at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo which opens on October 28. The display for the Tokyo Future Tour section of the show will feature a one-fifth scale model of the recently redesigned SD-05 and a full-scale mock-up of the earlier SD-03 technology demonstrator.

SkyDrive and Suzuki Establish eVTOL Aircraft Manufacturing Subsidiary

Korean aircraft leasing group Solyu Company plans to acquire up to 50 of SkyDrive’s eVTOL vehicles to its portfolio. In a memorandum of understanding signed on September 15, Solyu agreed to provisional pre-orders for the three-seat SD-05 aircraft.
Seoul-based Solyu is preparing to provide equipment to support the anticipated demand for advanced air mobility services in South Korea, where the government has expressed support for the new mode of transportation as part of plans to reduce urban road congestion. The company also intends to include other electric airplanes, including new eSTOL models that only need short runways to operate, in its leasing portfolio. Earlier this month, Solyu signed a provisional agreement to buy 25 of Eviation’s Alice electric regional aircraft.
In June, Japan-based SkyDrive announced a <a href="Korean aircraft leasing group Solyu Company plans to acquire up to 50 of SkyDrive’s eVTOL vehicles to its portfolio. In a memorandum of understanding signed on September 15, Solyu agreed to provisional pre-orders for the three-seat SD-05 aircraft. Seoul-based Solyu is preparing to provide equipment to support anticipated demand for advanced air mobility services in South Korea, where the government has expressed support for the new mode of transportation as part of plans to reduce urban road congestion. The company also intends to include other electric airplanes, including new eSTOL models that only need short runways to operate, in its leasing portfolio. Earlier this month, Solyu signed a provisional agreemen to buy 25 of Eviation’s Alice electric regional aircraft. In June, Japan-based SkyDrive announced a redesign of its eVTOL design, to add an extra seat to accommodate a pilot plus two passengers. The company has begun a type certification process with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau and aims to have the SD-05 certified and ready to enter commercial service in 2026. Recently, SkyDrive signed provisional sales agreements with Vietnamese technology group CT covering the purchase of 100 of the SD-05 model and with South Carolina-based operator Austin Aviation for 5 units. It also holds “pre-orders” for 10 more of the eVTOL vehicles from Vietnamese renewable energy company Pacific Group. “This is the first pre-order from a leasing company and we are very grateful to be able to proceed with the Solyu team with extensive experience in the aircraft leasing industry,” commented SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa. “We look forward to working with Solyu to open up the Korean market and to contribute to the goal. Of reducing CO2 emisssions in the Korean aviation sector.”">redesign of its eVTOL design</a>, to add an extra seat to accommodate a pilot plus two passengers. The company has begun a type certification process with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau and aims to have the SD-05 certified and ready to enter commercial service in 2026. The aircraft is intended purely for short journeys, with an anticipated range of just 15 km (9 miles).
Recently, SkyDrive signed <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-07-21/skydrive-reports-more-provisional-evtol-aircraft-sales-vietnam-and-south">provisional sales agreements </a>with Vietnamese technology group CT covering the purchase of 100 of the SD-05 model and with South Carolina-based operator Austin Aviation for 5 units. It also holds “pre-orders” for 10 more of the eVTOL vehicles from Vietnamese renewable energy company Pacific Group. The company has also secured some orders from clients in Japan.
“This is the first pre-order from a leasing company and we are very grateful to be able to proceed with the Solyu team with extensive experience in the aircraft leasing industry,” commented SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa. “We look forward to working with Solyu to open up the Korean market and to contribute to the goal. Of reducing CO2 emissions in the Korean aviation sector.”

Korean Leasing Group Plans to Add SkyDrive eVTOL Vehicle to Portfolio

SkyDrive is embarking on a joint research project with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to study ways to estimate, evaluate, and reduce the noise produced by new eVTOL aircraft.&nbsp;
The Tokyo-based start-up, which is developing a three-seat eVTOL air taxi, has been using JAXA’s largest wind tunnel since 2021 <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2021-08-10/skydrive-evaluates-flying-car-rotors-wind-tunnel">to evaluate the aerodynamics</a> and performance of its designs—particularly the rotors. According to SkyDrive, it is the first eVTOL aircraft developer to conduct tests in JAXA’s wind tunnel facility, which has been used for the development of nearly every airplane, helicopter, and spacecraft produced in Japan.&nbsp;
Now, SkyDrive and JAXA have signed a joint research agreement focused specifically on noise reduction in eVTOL aircraft. While SkyDrive has been conducting its own research on noise reduction to make its aircraft as quiet as possible, JAXA has been developing a type of technology that it says can pinpoint the exact locations of noise sources and the amount of noise emitted from each source.&nbsp;
SkyDrive plans to use <a href="https://www.aero.jaxa.jp/eng/research/basic/aerodynamic/noise/">JAXA’s noise-analysis technology</a> to study the noise profile of its eVTOL rotors and find ways to make them quieter. Several factors of a rotor’s design can affect its noise profile, such as the diameter, blade count, and tip speed. As part of the research agreement, SkyDrive will also “promote research on the improvement of noise estimation technology for eVTOLs in cooperation with JAXA,” the company said in a statement.
“We will use the data acquired through the research by using JAXA’s existing noise source identification technology to take us through the major step to developing flying cars that the society needs,” said SkyDrive’s chief technology officer, Nobuo Kishi.
SkyDrive was launched in 2018 as part of Japan's Cartivator consortium to advance plans for a two-seat “flying car”—also known as a personal eVTOL aircraft—as well as a cargo-carrying variant. In June the company unveiled an <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-three-seat-evtol-aircraft-suzuki-factory">updated aircraft design with three seats</a>, which will be intended for commercial air taxi operations. The piloted aircraft will have a range of about nine miles (15 kilometers) and is intended for short&nbsp;trips across urban areas.&nbsp;
The company aims to gain airworthiness certification for the three-seat model in time to fly it at the Osaka World Expo in 2025. It expects to achieve type certification and enter service in 2026, with commercial air taxi operations launching in Japan and <a href="https://futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-01-26/japans-skydrive-focuses-south-carolina-us-evtol-services">South Carolina</a>.

SkyDrive and JAXA Partner on eVTOL Noise Research

Vietnamese technology group CT plans to buy 100 of SkyDrive’s SD-05 three-seat eVTOL aircraft under the terms of a preorder memorandum of understanding signed with the Japanese manufacturer on July 21. The&nbsp;Ho Chi Minh City-based group’s CT UAV division, which is developing its uncrewed air vehicles (UAV) business, will acquire the all-electric vehicles.
The deal was announced a day after U.S. Part 135 charter operator Austin Aviation signed a letter of intent covering provisional preorders for five of the aircraft, which is expected to enter service in 2026. The company intends to offer air taxi services in South Carolina.
SkyDrive unveiled the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-electric-air-taxis-suzuki-factory">three-seat&nbsp;eVTOL air taxi</a>&nbsp;at the Paris Air Show in June as a larger version of the original two-seat model, with the original SD-05 designation to be retained. The&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-06-22/skydrive-build-electric-air-taxis-suzuki-factory">vehicle</a>&nbsp;will have a range of just nine miles and is intended for short hops, such as trips to and from airports.
In November 2022, Vietnamese renewable-energy company <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-11-29/pacific-group-preorders-skydrive-sd-05-evtol-aircraft-vietnam-operations">Pacific Group </a>preordered 10 of the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/skydrive">SD-05</a> model and committed to options for another 90 units. This agreement will now cover the new three-seat version of the aircraft.
Along with CT UAV, it will work with SkyDrive to develop business models and support infrastructure for eVTOL air services in Vietnam, where economic growth is colliding with crowded urban transportation networks.&nbsp;CT UAV,&nbsp;one of nine CT Group businesses, is working to integrate artificial intelligence with uncrewed vehicle technology and is active in drone development and operations. CT Group is also involved in urban development, construction,&nbsp;and logistics.
<h3 class="subheading">South Carolina Has Advanced Air Mobility Ambitions</h3>
Toyota City-based SkyDrive announced the deal with Austin Aviation during an event on July 20 in Beaufort, South Carolina, where it is already working with ground infrastructure group Volatus to develop plans for advanced air mobility (AAM) services in the state. Beaufort is the Japanese company’s <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-01-26/japans-skydrive-focuses-south-carolina-us-evtol-services">U.S. headquarters </a>and Austin Aviation is based 45 miles away in Walterboro. 
Austin Aviation is a subsidiary of Lowcountry Aviation Company. It has agreed to make its facilities available to SkyDrive as part of its plans to expand operations in the U.S.
“Sustainable electric propulsion vertical takeoff and landing vehicles are the next new exciting challenge in general aviation, following the early lead of the automotive industry with electric propulsion,” said Austin Aviation president Alex Cavazzoni. “With the SkyDrive vehicle and all South Carolina stakeholders, we look forward to being a part of this exciting new chapter in general aviation, as this new pioneering electric technology matures into reality.”
SkyDrive&nbsp;founder and CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa was in Beaufort for the signing event. He said that since announcing plans to enter the U.S. market in January, the company has received “an overwhelming amount of support from local, regional, and state organizations” in South Carolina. SkyDrive's backers include the Japanese automotive group <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-03-22/car-maker-suzuki-backs-skydrives-plans-bring-flying-car-market">Suzuki</a>.
Earlier this year, SkyDrive announced other provisional orders for the SD-05 vehicle from the Japanese engineering group <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-19/japanese-engineering-group-taiho-orders-skydrives-sd-05-evtol-aircraft">Taiho</a>&nbsp;and also from Drone Fund venture&nbsp;capitalist&nbsp;founder <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-13/skydrive-signs-first-private-use-preorder-sd-05-evtol-aircraft">Kotaro Chiba</a>. The latter agreement was the company's first sale of its eVTOL vehicles to a private owner who intends to fly the aircraft himself.
This story was updated on July 24 to clarify that the new three-seat version of SkyDrive's eVTOL aircraft will retain the SD-05 designation used for the original two-seat design. The company will not produce the two-seat model.

SkyDrive Reports More Provisional eVTOL Aircraft Sales in Vietnam and South Carolina

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South Carolina-based Austin Aviation has committed to buying five of the three-seat eVTOL from Japan's SkyDrive, which also logged new sales in Vietnam.

U.S. Charter Operator Orders SkyDrive's eVTOL Air Taxi

Japanese electric aircraft developer SkyDrive plans to manufacture its eVTOL air taxi in a factory owned by car maker Suzuki Motor Corporation, the company said this week during the Paris Air Show. It also announced that avionics specialist Thales will provide the aircraft's flight controls.&nbsp;&nbsp;
SkyDrive has also updated the design of its eVTOL aircraft to include an additional seat. Now with three seats, the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2023-04-13/skydrive-signs-first-private-use-preorder-sd-05-evtol-aircraft">fully electric aircraft</a> will carry up to two passengers plus one pilot on short flights of up to 15 kilometers (9 miles), according to SkyDrive.&nbsp;
While to date the company has called its two-seat model the SD-05, it will name the&nbsp;production series aircraft simply “SkyDrive.”&nbsp;The company aims to gain airworthiness certification for the three-seat SkyDrive model in time to fly it at the Osaka World Expo in 2025. It expects to achieve type certification and enter service in 2026.&nbsp;
Suzuki and SkyDrive will begin building the eVTOL aircraft in 2024 at a Suzuki production facility located in Japan’s Shizuoka Prefecture. SkyDrive says it is establishing a wholly-owned manufacturing subsidiary to oversee the vehicle’s production in tandem with Suzuki, which has served as a <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-03-22/car-maker-suzuki-backs-skydrives-plans-bring-flying-car-market">partner company</a> since 2022. The as-yet-unnamed manufacturing subsidiary will work together with Suzuki to secure human resources and make other preparations to establish the new eVTOL production line at the carmaking plant.&nbsp;
“At Suzuki, all manufacturing activities are based on a concept: smaller, fewer, lighter, shorter, and neater,” said SkyDrive CEO Tomohiro Fukuzawa. “In our pursuit to consistently manufacture safe and high-quality aircraft for the world, we are grateful for the valuable know-how we will learn from Suzuki, a global leader in automobile mass production.

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