AIR CEO says prototype crash ‘part of clean-sheet aircraft development’

Deep Dive

by Yves Le Marquand

30 October 2025

According to NTSB, the aircraft crashed in a field for unknown reasons and was consumed by post-crash fire.

A mishap yes, but crashes are not “unexpected” when developing a clean-sheet aircraft, says AIR CEO Rani Plaut following the loss of a prototype during flight testing on October 23rd.

The incident – involving an uncrewed prototype (tail reg: N514AX) – in which the aircraft was consumed by fire has resulted in a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation. No injuries were reported.

In a statement, NTSB said: “The NTSB is investigating the crash Thursday of an unmanned Air Vev Inc. Zero eVTOL in Indiantown, Florida. Aircraft crashed in a field for unknown reasons and was consumed by post-crash fire.”

Given the ongoing nature of the investigation, certain information and images of the incident remain confidential until conclusion.

Plaut, who spoke to us from the scene of the incident where he was cooperating with NTSB investigators, revealed some general details. “We’ve been running a flight campaign here since August,” he said. “We’ve covered all parts of the flight envelope, including takeoffs, landings, transitions and endurance tests.”

AIR’s chief revealed the engineering team had been extensively testing the system in recent weeks. Since this was a proof-of-concept aircraft, “while a crash is undesirable, it’s not entirely unexpected,” said Plaut.

“That’s how we learn – ideally without losing an aircraft, but it happens. Joby, Beta and Ehang have all lost aircraft during development. It’s not inevitable, but it’s common with clean-sheet designs.”

The aircraft was one of a few fully operational prototypes AIR has been flying since 2022. “We operate unmanned flights and deliberately push the limits to identify weaknesses,” said Plaut.

“We have several functional prototypes; the first production prototype should fly this November and another is coming to Florida early next year. The prototype that crashed was nearing the end of its programme life – essentially, it was a proof-of-concept aircraft.”

Having this optionality means the incident has not “significantly” delayed AIR’s progress.

“We’re debriefing and investigating the cause, but I don’t expect any major delays,” explained Plaut. “We’re just weeks away from flying the production unit. It’s based on high-volume, off-the-shelf and Tier 1 supplier components.”

The company concluded a $23m Series A raise in August 2025 led by Entrée Capital with funds set to be largely concentrated on AIR’s US expansion plans.

It is not clear when the NTSB investigation will conclude. Investigators took two years to issue findings following a crash involving a Joby Aviation prototype in February 2022. It also took a similar period of time to conclude an investigation into an incident involving an Enstrom 280 linked to Beta Technologies which occurred in July 2021.

“We’re fully cooperating, all data has been transmitted as requested,” concluded Plaut.