Photo: AutoFlight
AutoFlight is doing great since the beginning of 2023. After completing a historic endeavor for the emerging industry of AAM (Advanced Air Mobility) it recently secured a hefty order for its eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) in both the air taxi and cargo configurations.
Headquartered in Augsburg, Germany, the air mobility company manufactures its electric aircraft in China, and has recently sold 200 units of its eVTOL to an Asian aviation operator based in Singapore. What makes it even more interesting is that this isn’t a conventional airline, but one that’s dedicated to the new generation of electric air taxis, called EVFLY.
All of the 205 AutoFlight aircraft will be operated by EVFLY in the Middle East, proving once again that the AAM industry was born to be global. Out of these, the first ones to take to the sky will be ten cargo eVTOLs, set to make their commercial debut in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. From there, operations will be expanded later on, to Asia and Africa.
This comes approximately a month after the eVTOL manufacturer smashed air mobility records with what claimed to be the longest flight ever recorded of an eVTOL. It happened back in February and wasn’t a single flight from point A to point B, but a total of 20 circuits, which were completed on a pre-defined flight track.
There was no pilot in Prosperity’s cockpit. The historic eVTOL flight was an uncrewed one, with the aircraft being controlled remotely, by an on-ground test team.
The whole thing lasted for an hour and 38 minutes, and was carried out at the company’s testing facility. The eVTOL known as Prosperity officially covered 155 miles (250 km) on a single charge.
This is the maximum range for which Prosperity was designed, since it’s powered exclusively by ion-lithium batteries (unlike hybrid VTOLs that also use hydrogen or sustainable aviation fuel, for an increased range). While covering this distance, the Prosperity aircraft can also handle up to 900 pounds (408 kg), cruising at more than 130 mph (209 kph). It can be configured either as a four-seat (pilot included) air taxi or a cargo eVTOL.
Fitted with state-of-the-art avionics and highly-redundant systems, Prosperity 1 also claims to combine the guarantee of high-level safety with low operational costs (the lowest operations costs per seat in the industry, allegedly).
It’s also worth noting that AutoFlight managed to get to this point relatively quickly. It was less than a year ago when it first demonstrated what the Prosperity prototype could do. The prototype, now having reached the fourth generation, was initially built in 2021.
AutoFlight is just one of the eVTOL manufacturers that are working together with EVFLY. This pioneering air mobility operator will offer eVTOLs not just for cargo and air taxi operations, but also for emergency ambulance services, and private VIP transportation.
All of the 205 AutoFlight aircraft will be operated by EVFLY in the Middle East, proving once again that the AAM industry was born to be global. Out of these, the first ones to take to the sky will be ten cargo eVTOLs, set to make their commercial debut in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. From there, operations will be expanded later on, to Asia and Africa.
This comes approximately a month after the eVTOL manufacturer smashed air mobility records with what claimed to be the longest flight ever recorded of an eVTOL. It happened back in February and wasn’t a single flight from point A to point B, but a total of 20 circuits, which were completed on a pre-defined flight track.
There was no pilot in Prosperity’s cockpit. The historic eVTOL flight was an uncrewed one, with the aircraft being controlled remotely, by an on-ground test team.
The whole thing lasted for an hour and 38 minutes, and was carried out at the company’s testing facility. The eVTOL known as Prosperity officially covered 155 miles (250 km) on a single charge.
This is the maximum range for which Prosperity was designed, since it’s powered exclusively by ion-lithium batteries (unlike hybrid VTOLs that also use hydrogen or sustainable aviation fuel, for an increased range). While covering this distance, the Prosperity aircraft can also handle up to 900 pounds (408 kg), cruising at more than 130 mph (209 kph). It can be configured either as a four-seat (pilot included) air taxi or a cargo eVTOL.
Fitted with state-of-the-art avionics and highly-redundant systems, Prosperity 1 also claims to combine the guarantee of high-level safety with low operational costs (the lowest operations costs per seat in the industry, allegedly).
It’s also worth noting that AutoFlight managed to get to this point relatively quickly. It was less than a year ago when it first demonstrated what the Prosperity prototype could do. The prototype, now having reached the fourth generation, was initially built in 2021.
AutoFlight is just one of the eVTOL manufacturers that are working together with EVFLY. This pioneering air mobility operator will offer eVTOLs not just for cargo and air taxi operations, but also for emergency ambulance services, and private VIP transportation.
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