News and analysis covering cutting-edge aviation technology and business models, including zero-carbon propulsion, eVTOL aircraft, automation and autonomy, and new infrastructure.
Students at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona had the opportunity to test out Reliable Robotics’ voice communication system for remotely piloted, highly autonomous aircraft.
The merger between the UK companies is expected to be complete by around mid-2023, at which point new investors will provide a further £10 million in capital.
The memorandum of understanding for the provisional sale was signed a week after SkyDrive started taking orders from private individuals for its two-seat eVTOL vehicle.
Natilus has successfully flown a subscale technology demonstrator aircraft and is moving ahead with a full-scale prototype of its Kona cargo freighter.
The University of Miami College of Engineering has created the Miami Engineering Autonomous Mobility Initiative, which “aims to advance autonomous mobility technology and anticipate challenges to implementation in today’s cities.”
The company is starting conceptual design work for an initial 44-passenger aircraft with a projected range of 460 km (250 nmi) that it says could reopen abandoned short-haul air services.
Autonomous aviation pioneer Xwing says it has formally begun the FAA approval process for its 'Superpilot' autonomous flight control system, which the company plans to use for pilotless cargo delivery flights in the U.S.
Merlin, a Boston-based company developing 'drop-in' autonomy kits for legacy fixed-wing aircraft, has received a $1 million contract from the FAA to demonstrate its autonomous flight technology with flight trials in Alaska.
Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company now has a 35 percent stake in LCI, which plans to diversify its portfolio to include new eVTOL aircraft.
The development of training equipment hinges on pending decisions from air safety agencies regarding their requirements for flight crew operating the new, as-yet-uncertified aircraft.