Nineteen months after they predicted UAM would be a niche market, Aviation Week’s Graham Warwick and Teal Group’s Richard Aboulafia are back to address why investors are now pouring billions of dollars into the emerging sector.
“Where’s my flying car?” may be the popular lament of disappointed futurists, but “Where’s the market?” is the more important question for startups trying to make roadable aircraft a reality. AeroMobil is targeting the exclusive clientele of supercar enthusiasts with its first product, the two-seat AeroMobil 4.0. But now the Slovakian startup is eyeing ride-hailing as a route to expanding the market.
Responding to U.S. advances in in-space manufacturing, Airbus has been selected to study an orbital factory and potential demonstrator mission to establish a European capability to manufacture and assemble satellites in orbit.
To electrify future large commercial aircraft will require new wiring systems that can distribute tens of megawatts of power at thousands of volts safely and reliably at high altitudes.
Startup Reliable Robotics has remotely piloted a Cessna 208B Caravan from a ground station 50 mi. away, a key step toward certifying an autonomy retrofit for the aircraft that will enable unmanned regional cargo operations.
