There are over 200 companies worldwide developing transformative vertical flight aircraft for advanced/urban air mobility. These aircraft use electrical vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) technology. They may incorporate either non-traditional electric or hybrid propulsion for manned (onboard pilot) or unmanned (remote pilot, or autonomous control) operation.
Among these pioneers is startup Lift Aircraft, in partnership with the United States Air Force. Its aircraft, called Hexa, took to the skies with a pilot on-board on August 20th, 2020, at Camp Mabry in Texas. The historical moment took place precisely 112 years after the Wright Brothers presented their first military aircraft. The Hexa lifted off and hovered overhead.
Top Air Force leaders – Secretary of the Air Force Barbara Barrett, Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force JoAnne S. Bass, and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown, Jr. – were there with their Texas National Guard hosts and AFWERX personnel to witness this first Agility Prime ORB flight demonstration.
Agility Prime is a non-traditional program aiming to accelerate the commercial market for advanced air mobility vehicles. The private aerospace firm is working with the Air Force to accelerate flying cars to the military’s flying arsenal.
Barrett said back in April 2020 during the program’s launch:
Agility Prime is a program with a vision of world impact. The thought of an electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle — a flying car — might seem straight out of a Hollywood movie, but by partnering today with stakeholders across industries and agencies, we can set up the United States for this aerospace phenomenon.
The Hexa is a carbon fiber eVTOL with 18 electric rotors that seats one person. It doesn’t require a pilot’s license because it falls under the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) ultralight category. It weighs 432-pounds (196 kg) and is controlled by a joystick. It safer than an airplane because it’s powered with a ‘triply redundant autopilot computer.’ It has been approved to heights of up to 1,200 feet (365 meters) but not overpopulated areas.
The US Air Force hopes to have around 30 eVTOL aircraft in its fleet by 2030. The Hexa was one of fifteen applicants to join the military’s Agility Prime program.
AFWERX director and Agility Prime lead, Col. Nathan Diller, said:
We now have over fifteen of the leading aircraft manufacturers in the world applying to partner with Agility Prime, with many of them already on contract. This flight today marks the first of many demonstrations and near-term flight tests designed to reduce the technical risk and prepare for Agility Prime fielding in 2023.
According to the Agility Prime website, the vehicles it promotes are not airplanes, helicopters, drones, or flying cars. But they could support similar missions and are designed to make life easier and safer. The aircraft could have utility in medical evacuation, civil and military disaster relief, firefighting, search and rescue, humanitarian relief operations, and be used to distribute sustainment and logistics.
