Seeing a dire need for propulsion expertise in the burgeoning electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) market, one of the contenders has made the decision to put aside work on its vehicle and focus instead on providing hybrid-electric systems to other developers.VerdeGo Aero was formed in December 2017 by Erik Lindbergh, grandson of Charles Lindbergh and a long-time proponent of clean, quiet electric aircraft. Co-founders are Pat Anderson, director of the Eagle Flight ResearchCenter at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU), and Eric Bartsch.Based at ERAU's MicaPlex incubator in Daytona, Florida, VerdeGo launched with plans to develop the PAT200, a two-seat eVTOL with hybrid-electric propulsion driving eight rotors on tandem tilting wings."There are more than 100 companies trying to build eVTOLs and, when we assess the competition, we are seeing real flaws in some of the designs," says Lindbergh. Many contenders have attracted funding "based on flying subscale models that won't scale or on designs that rely on battery technology," he says. "A business plan based on all-battery propulsion is a really risky bet.
展开▼
