Flying Taxi Company Unveils 5-Passenger Vehicle

Air taxi developer Beta Technologies in Burlington, Vermont, has provided an early look at the passenger version of its fixed-wing VTOL (vertical takeoff and landing) vehicle Alia.

The electric aerial vehicle (EAV) is designed to carry five passengers and a pilot, as well as carry-on luggage.

The passenger version of the EAV is expected to launch after the Beta cargo and medical versions, which are targeted for 2025.

The passenger-carrying EAV would be used for intra-city and regional transportation.

“At Beta, we see electric aviation technology as transcending one single mission set,” said Kyle Clark, Beta founder and CEO. “We designed Alia to be a versatile platform that has tons of capability across sectors and now we’re starting to step into that vision. With their high dispatch rate and low maintenance and operational energy costs, our electric passenger aircraft will unlock new routes for operators, further increasing the size of the pie.”

Beta recently added electric charging stations for ground and electric aerial vehicles (EAV) at Tallahassee International Airport (TLH), Gainesville Regional Airport (GNV) and Bob Sikes Airport (CEW). 

Beta now has added more than 30 charging stations along the east, west and gulf coasts with each Florida installation including a level three fast charger located inside the fence, known as airside, for use by EAVs and electric airport ground vehicles, and a level two charger outside the fence, known as landside, for ground EVs.

Related:Flying Taxi Company Expands at Michigan Airports

Beta chargers have been purchased by Archer Aviation, Atlantic Aviation, Signature Aviation, AvFlight, and the Department of Defense.

Beta is also installing charging stations outside Florida in partnership with airports and other partners across the U.S. 

Beta recently won a $20 million federal contract with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response to install EAV chargers in rural areas along the east and gulf coasts.

The contract would allow Beta to build charging stations to enable an emergency preparedness platform for the federal department to establish a cost-effective network to deliver equipment, pharmaceuticals and patients, even in relatively remote areas.

Beta’s chargers are designed to support its own EAVs and others, along with ground electric vehicles.

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The relatively lower operational costs and increased utility are expected to allow eVTOL vehicles to offer better transport opportunities than current medical transportation methods.

Related:Flying Taxi Company Expanding; $20M Grant from New York

Beta recently received a $2.6 million grant from the state of Michigan to help scale advanced air mobility (AAM) which came via Michigan’s AAM Activation Fund to create a centralized pipeline of projects to drive AAM growth in the state. 

Beta intends to use the grant to install multimodal chargers at Cherry Capital Airport, Capital Region International Airport, West Michigan Regional Airport and Willow Run Airport as the start of a charging network.

Late last year, Beta was granted $20 million from the Clinton County from Empire State Development’s Regional Economic and Community Assistance Program in New York to expand its operations at Plattsburgh International Airport.

The new facility is intended to become the manufacturing and final assembly hub for Beta’s EAV and to create a permanent flight test and delivery center, for final flight testing, vehicle painting and customer delivery.

Beta has orders for its flying vehicles from UPS, United Therapeutics and Bristow and has contracts with the U.S. Air Force and Army.

Blade ordered up to 20 of Beta EAV in 2021 and LCI has announced it will be using Beta flying vehicles to move guests at the Aria Hotels in Greece. Helijet has placed an order for four eVTOLs for cargo and passenger missions. 

Related:Electric Air Taxi Company Opens Production Facility

Beta also was approved for a $169 million loan to finance its net-zero final assembly production facility from the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

The 188,500 square foot manufacturing facility at the Patrick Leahy Burlington International Airport, where Beta plans to build its eVTOL and CTOL (conventional takeoff and landing) vehicles.

The new production facility, on a 40-acre site at the airport, could ultimately produce 300 EAVs a year, according to the company.

Beta has partnered with AFWERX, the innovation arm of the U.S. Air Force that leverages the Air Force Research Laboratory for this program.

Beta installed aircraft electric charging stations at Eglin Air Force Base to service the electric flying vehicle there. Beta’s eCTOL aircraft is planned for service in 2025 with its vertical version in service the following year.

Many EAVs are eVTOLs, which do not require traditional runways, since they take off and land straight up and down.

Vertiport facilities to manage the takeoff, landing, charging and maintenance of such vehicles are being established by companies such as Florida-based Aeroauto Global, which is also developing retail showrooms for flying vehicle sales.