FlyNow Aviation has developed a modular family of automatic electric helicopters (eCopters or eVTOLs) for transporting cargo of 200 kg and a one-seat and two-seat passenger version for a range of up to 50 km.
Automatic, but not autonomous: what’s the difference?
Although no one is piloting the eCopters, the company prefers the name automatic instead of autonomous, explaining why: “Automatic flight means that the aircraft flies along a fixed route and that its flight path follows a flight plan. This has been practiced successfully and safely in aviation for many years. You could imagine such a route as the cable of a cable car. Autonomous flight would be quite different: in this case, the aircraft selects the route itself and has to make safety-critical decisions in real time. We know that there is a lot of talk about ‘autonomous cars’ these days, but the reality is that the necessary technology (i.e. mainly artificial intelligence) won’t be ready for a vehicle to make its own decisions for several years, if not decades. The same applies to aviation. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) assumes that autonomous flight won’t be viable from a technical and regulatory point of view until well after 2030. FlyNow is sticking to what is actually technically feasible.”
►These eCopters are considered eVTOLs, i.e. electric Vertical Take Off & Landing Vehicles.
This Austrian company is working to make this means of transport available in the United Arab Emirates to transport visitors to Expo 2030 in Riyadh between October 1 and March 31, 2031.
This vehicle, according to FlyNow Aviation, makes it possible to relieve traffic on the ground, but also to reduce energy consumption per passenger-kilometer, compared to any ground mobility infrastructure.
These automated eCopters will have software that employs AI-powered predictive geospatial intelligence, which is supplied by the company Bayanat.
FlyNow Aviation has taken inspiration from NASA’s Mars Helicopter ‘Ingenuity’ for the design of its rotor.
NASA’s Mars Helicopter ‘Ingenuity’
The FlyNow Aviation company is preparing to open a regional office and production line in Saudi Arabia in the next two months, in addition to the factory that will be set up in the UK, both for local production and sales, as well as for export.
Flynow’s helicopters are powered by electric batteries and fly for 30 minutes at a maximum speed of 130 km/h. The eCopters use coaxial rotors, which means that one rotor sits on top of the other on the same axis, but rotates in opposite directions.
An electric motor drives each rotor, which in turn is made up of four independent units. The aviation company claims that this can prevent possible engine failures while the eCopters are flying in the air. If one of the engine segments fails, it will be replaced by the remaining three, says the company.
In terms of potential collisions, the eCopters, equipped with sensors, can detect what is in front of them. If they encounter another aircraft or even a bird in the air, the automatic electric helicopters remain stationary for a moment before returning to flight.
