China's Impressive eVTOL Air Taxi
eVTOL Successfully Take-offs, Lands, Transitions to Forward Flight
Chinese Company Seeks Certification to Fly Passengers
Shanghai-based aviation company AutoFlight has unveiled a very impressive electric Vertical Take Off & Landing (eVTOL) air taxi. It's called Prosperity 1. This new eVTOL has successfully demonstrated vertical takeoffs, the transition to rear propulsion for forward flight and switching back to its top propellers for vertical landings. It is a significant contender in the rapidly accelerating world of flying taxis. AutoFlight has a portfolio of successfully launched planes and several eVTOLs, including an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in mass production - the autonomous V50 White Shark.
Tech Specs
Prosperity 1 is autonomous, electric and very recently demonstrated its technical capabilities during a test flight in China. It flew at speeds of 123 mph and hit an altitude of nearly 500 feet. The eVTOL weighs 3,307 pounds. 8 rotors power the vertical take-off. When the vehicle hits an airspeed of 100 mph, the fixed wings gain lift. At that point, the rotors on the top of the vehicle lock into a position for cruising. Propellers in the rear of the plane provide forward thrust for travel. The transition from vertical takeoff to forward flight is critical to the eVTOL's development. In Prosperity 1's test flights, the transition has been "smooth, safe and seamless", according to AutoFlight.
Next Steps
Next steps for AutoFlight are the continued development of their proof-of-concept Prosperity 1 air taxi. They are also working on securing certification for passenger flights in China as well as seeking certification for manned passenger flights in Europe, beginning in 2025.
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