The Future of Advanced Air Mobility

The FlytCycle, Flyt Aerospace's test hoverbike project, has undergone numerous designs and configurations. In fact, the company has designed, built and tested 11 different vehicle designs. It has conducted hundreds of flight tests, including some manned tests, and have flown public demonstrations in four different countries.

Out of this process came the Red Hummingbird, an eight rotor hoverbike meant for recreational and fleet-based use. The prototype vehicle was completed in January 2020, with the first test flight happening on January 30.  Following additional testing and upgrades, the company will move to manned test flights, with the goal of publicly demonstrating the Red Hummingbird later in 2020.

Future program phases include building two-seater skydiving drones, a two-seater recreational vehicle, and, eventually, advanced eVTOL aircraft for mass transportation use.

Timeline

test flight

First flight of the Red Hummingbird prototype

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

Flyt Aerospace has been in business for almost seven years. It has made progress in developing several light hoverbike designs and has been able to demonstrate that these can fly. As of May 2020, it is seeking fresh investment to bring its Red Hummingbird model to market and to press ahead with its longer-term plans.

It is not clear how much engineering experience the Flyt team includes or how it would be able to progress to manufacturing.

Flyt Hoverbikes Models

Red Hummingbird Specifications

local vtol Flying Car/Hover Bike

Performance

  • Passenger Capacity
    1
  • Range
    15 mi
  • Cruise Speed
    60 mph
  • Powerplant Type
    multi rotor
  • Power Source
    electric
  • Endurance
    19 min
  • Max Altitude
    4,000 ft
  • Takeoff Distance
    n/a
  • Landing Distance
    n/a
  • Empty Weight
    n/a
  • MGTOW
    n/a
  • Payload Weight
    n/a

Dimensions

  • Length
    n/a
  • Width
    n/a
  • Height
    n/a
  • Wingspan
    n/a

The Red Hummingbird is a lightweight hoverbike intended for recreational use. It has eight electrically-powered rotors and is flown by a single pilot. The vehicle has fly-by-wire controls and two joysticks. Its batteries weigh 254 pounds to comply with FAA requirements for light sports aircraft.

Key Personnel

Ansel Misfeldt is founder and CEO of Flyt Aerospace.
Ansel Misfeldt

Founder