With an eye towards launching operations by the middle of the decade, leading developers of electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are pressing hard and making demonstrable progress towards certification and beginning advanced air mobility (AAM) operations. Several eVTOL developers, including Beta Technologies, EHang and Overair, announced the conclusion of recent test campaigns, while German firms Lilium and Volocopter revealed the results of new fundraising efforts. After a busy 2022, expectations are high for the coming year. This is a summary of recent news announcements (Archer's progress is covered in a separate article, "Archer's Midnight Showing," pg. 54). Beta Technologies completed another successful crosscountry flight with its Alia-250 eVTOL aircraft. In a Dec. 7 post on LinkedIn, the Vermont-based eVTOL developer said that the team flew to the UPS Worldport in Louisville, Kentucky, where Beta introduced the Alia-250 to US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. The Alia-250 completed the 876-mile (1,409-km) journey from New York's Plattsburgh International Airport in five days, making seven stops to recharge. Beta completed a similar journey in May, when the company completed a record-setting flight from New York to Arkansas (see "Beta Flies Cross Country," Vertiflite, July/Aug 2022). UPS is an early customer of the Beta Alia-250; it intends to acquire at least 10 and as many as 150 eVTOL aircraft for its Flight Forward subsidiary.
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