Moya Aero test campaign nears 200-flight milestone

Since the turn of the year, Brazilian eVTOL developer Moya Aero has completed almost 200 flight tests, exploring the transition envelope of its prototype aircraft. 

These flights have generated extensive real-world data, enabled deep system validation, and allowed the firm to continue refining its flight capabilities, according to CEO and founder Alexandre Zaramela.

“Reaching this stage is an essential milestone for Moya. It reflects the effort put into testing, refining, and improving the aircraft step by step toward operating the platform in early 2027. Each flight brings valuable insights, helping us move forward with a more mature and capable system,” Zaramela told us.

Currently, the Moya team is primarily focused on validating systems, fine-tuning control strategies and “optimising” flight behaviour.

The test flights are being conducted at SDA4 Airfield, located in Tremembé, on the outskirts of São José dos Campos-SP. The first flight was in November 2023, with the test campaign ramping up in the second half of 2024 and continuing into January this year.

Before each flight phase, Zaramela said Moya conducts extensive studies, SIL (Software-in-the-LooP) and HIL (Hardware-in-the-Loop) simulations and component testing to ensure system reliability.

“For the flight campaign itself, we started with manual vertical flight, focusing on refining control laws. As the aircraft became more stable, we gradually introduced automation, implementing and testing control strategies that had been previously simulated and studied.

“Flight logs were continuously analysed to make improvements, ensuring the aircraft was fully optimised for vertical flight before moving to the transition phase,” he added.

Moya will now move to testing all phases of flight with full automation, allowing them to “fine-tune” control laws and improve performance in different conditions. “Expanding the flight envelope means ensuring the aircraft can successfully complete a full mission, evaluating different operational scenarios with a compromise with safety,” said Zaramela.