The Future of Advanced Air Mobility

Israel-based Air is working on a two-seat personal eVTOL aircraft called the Air One, and anticipates making first deliveries to owner-pilots from 2024. 

The design drawings released in October 2021 show a fixed-wing aircraft with eight electric motors, each with a pair of three-bladed rotors, and a boom tail. The front pair of motor/rotor units are attached to the lower side of the fuselage, while the rear seats are mated to the fuselage at the same point as the tail section. The Air One is expected to offer a range of up to 110 miles (or a flight duration of one hour) on a full electric charge, at speeds of 155 mph. 

Since 2019, the company has been in talks with the FAA to agree on the basis for type certification. According to Plaut, Air is set to benefit from the earlier work done by other eVTOL developers to encourage FAA officials to define special conditions for certifying the new type of aircraft under existing Part 23 rules.

In March 2022, Australian electric aircraft distributor FlyOne agreed to market an initial batch of 25 aircraft in its home market and provide support for these. In May 2022, the company appointed Florida-based Aeroauto Aeromall as its U.S. distributor, after exhibiting the prototype at the Kentucky Derby horse race. The company has started accepting pre-orders for the $150,000 vehicle, based on $1,000 deposits.

Air reported in May 2022 that it was preparing to start hover testing with the prototype and also working with the FAA to complete the second stage of establishing its G1 basis for type certification. Following subsequent hover testing, the company achieved its first full transition flight on December 18, 2022.

Timeline

Projected

type certification granted

FAA type certification granted.

Air unveiled the design for the Air One personal eVTOL vehicle and started taking provisional orders.

Outlook

Our objective assessment of this program’s probable success.

FutureFlight assesses the probability of success for a new aircraft program by considering the following criteria:

  • Total investment funds available in proportion to the anticipated cost of getting an aircraft certified and in service
  • A company’s in-house capability (in terms of numbers of engineers, technical staff, and customer support teams)
  • The past experience of the company and its senior leadership in developing aircraft
  • The caliber and past experience of key program partners
  • Whether key aircraft systems have been selected and are available for use
  • Whether the preliminary design review has been completed
  • Whether the design for the full-scale prototype has been completed
  • Whether the type certification process has been formally initiated with an appropriate regulator
  • Whether the company has achieved a first flight with a full-scale prototype
  • The number of hours logged in a flight test program
  • Whether type certification has been achieved
  • The number of orders and commitment received for the aircraft
  • Whether the company has adequate facilities to begin series production of the aircraft
Our Methodology

Air is one of several eVTOL aircraft start-ups focusing on what it views as a rich vein of demand for personal air transportation. The company claims its fixed-wing design will benefit from reduced complexity and offer superior range and speed for an aircraft in its class. While it has started to accept provisional orders, it remains to be seen whether Air has sufficient funding to meet its timeline for getting the vehicle to market. The recent appointment of distributors in the U.S. and Australia represents progress in establishing its planned retail sales operation to target private buyers. The start of flight testing in the second half of 2022 was a significant milestone for the start-up.