Flying Taxi Company Lands 20-Unit Order for US Operations

A German developer of an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) jet has received an order for 20 of its flying vehicles.

UrbanLink, the South Florida advanced air mobility (AAM) startup purchaser, also has an option to purchase 20 additional electric jets and plans to operate the electric aerial vehicles (EAV) in South Florida.

UrbanLink intends to utilize the network of Florida vertiports that Lilium and its partners have been working on for five years.

“We are proud that UrbanLink has selected the Lilium Jet for its network and operations,” said Sebastien Borel, chief commercial officer of Lilium. “This is a huge milestone, not only for Lilium, but for the commercialization of eVTOLs in the U.S. We believe that this purchase of eVTOL aircraft is the first by a commercial operator that isn’t invested in the manufacturer that it is purchasing from. This is a sign that the market for eVTOL aircraft has matured and there is growing demand for aircraft that can provide connections between, rather than just within, cities.”

The EAV is not yet ready for delivery, with the first flight tests of the Lilium Jet with a pilot planned for later this year.

Lilium recently received the first set of standby flight instruments from Garmin. The standby instrumentation serves as a backup display if the cockpit instrumentation fails.

Related:Flying Taxi Company Gets Garmin Backup System

The backup system is intended to aid in the dual-type certification by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for the Lilium electric jet.

The Garmin flight instrument, in use on thousands of certified aircraft, is expected to be integrated into the Lilium Jet’s cockpit to interface with the EAV flight control computer. 

The system has a touchscreen flight display.

Lilium recently partnered with an electric vehicle charging infrastructure and microgrid company to provide charging systems for its electric jets.

The EAV maker put in an order for 120 chargers from Star Charge for its ground and flight-testing vehicles.

The chargers use a long, liquid-cooled charging cable for high-performance charging.

The deal followed an earlier announcement that Lilium was teaming with jet and helicopter operator PhilJets to establish AAM services in the Philippines and other Southeast Asia countries.

Lilium and PhilJets plan to jointly develop routes and determine passenger demand for an on-demand eVTOL service in the region. That deal included the sale of 10 Lilium jets to PhilJets.

This is not the first announcement relating to EAV services starting in the Philippines.

Related:Flying Taxi Company Buying 120 Chargers; Liquid-Cooled Cables

LuftCar, the developer of a hydrogen-powered eVTOL, also is expanding into the Philippines via a recent partnership.

LuftCar and eFrancisco Motor Corporation (eFMC) agreed to develop and deploy the LuftCar flying car system in the Philippines.

The LuftCar hydrogen-powered air vehicle would connect to and lift road vehicles created by eFMC, a major jeepney manufacturer.

LuftCar plans to lead the EAV vehicle prototype development and eFMC would provide the vehicle chassis.

In the Lilium-PhilJets partnership, the plan is to bring high-speed regional air mobility to Southeast Asia.

The Lilium eVTOL craft is a jet, unlike most EAVs.

The seven-seater vehicles are planned as a regional air mobility service, connecting cities and towns up to 125 miles apart at speeds of up to 185 mph.

The flying vehicle features forward canards (small wings near the front) along with main wings and a distributed propulsion system with fixed landing gear without hydraulics.

During takeoff, the plane would use its 36 electric ducted fans to hover for up to 25 seconds and 20 seconds during the landing phase, according to the company. Most of the flight time would be in the cruise stage with a relatively short takeoff and landing time.

Related:Flying Taxi Company Partners for Service in Philippines; Electric Jets

The company estimates the range of the craft at 150 miles.

Lilium has teamed with the Lufthansa Group to explore opportunities in aviation including ground and flight operations, EAV maintenance and flight training in Europe.

Founded in 2015, Lilium has manufacturing facilities in Munich, Germany, with teams in the U.S. and Europe with the European market expected to account for more than 9,000 vehicles through 2035.

The fuselage for the Lilium jet was developed by Aciturri in Spain, with delivery to Lilium facilities in Germany. Aciturri, also a Lilium investor, has designed and manufactured airframe components for Airbus, Boeing and Embraer.

Lilium recently secured $192 million in financing in addition to a coming public offering. It received funding from different investors including board members and initial backer Tencent Holdings.

The company is not alone in the race for new air transportation services, including flying cars, personal air vehicles, ultralights, which do not require a pilot license, and certified vehicles, which require a license.

One eVTOL company, Joby Aviation, recently announced the planned building of a facility in Dayton, Ohio, to deliver up to 500 eVTOL vehicles a year. Joby has partnerships with Uber and Delta Air Lines.

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