AutoFlight reveals second proof of concept in flight
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AutoFlight has released its second proof-of-concept (POC) video for the Prosperity I. The new video, debuting less than four months after the first POC video, includes a modified designed.
The latest design has new lifting propellers which allow for a higher hover efficiency, said AutoFlight. The two pushing propellers that were previously on either side of the air taxi have been replaced with one centre propeller with twin motors. This most recent design is very close to the final design which will be released later in 2022, said the firm.
When ready for commercial flight in 2026, Prosperity I is expected to reduce a trip that takes hours by car to about 10 minutes “without being any less safe or more expensive than a car taxi ride”.
AutoFlight started building POC#2 in January. The production took around 3 months, with the maiden flight in April, before achieving 30+ additional transition flights in the last few weeks.
Mark Henning, managing director, AutoFlight Europe said: “POC#2 is a new milestone for us, and we are pleased to have achieved over 30 successful transitions in the last few weeks with a full-size aircraft. This further demonstrates the great potential of our lift & cruise configuration which combines simplicity and safety. We will encompass all these key experiences and learnings into the final, full scale, design of Prosperity I which we will be revealing later this year.”
AutoFlight CEO Tian Yu, said: “We’re delighted to announce POC#2 for Prosperity I. This takes us another step towards our vision of unlocking the skies for mass individual transport in the air by creating safe, efficient eVTOL aircrafts.”
The new is the latest in a series of developments for AutoFlight including the establishment of a European base in Augsburg, Germany, the appointment of Mark Henning (formerly of Airbus), as well as a $100m investment from mobility investor, Team Global.
