Airbus has revealed the latest edition of CityAirbus, the company’s zero-emission electric vehicle built to fly in noise-sensitive urban areas on Tuesday. The fully electric vehicle is equipped with fixed wings, a V-shaped tail, and eight electrically powered propellers as part of its distributed propulsion system. It is designed to carry up to four passengers in a zero-emissions flight in multiple applications.
The next generation of the electric aircraft is part of Airbus’s vision for an intra-city “flying taxi” service. The zero-emission eVTOL plane was revealed at the company’s first Airbus Summit on “Pioneering Sustainable Aerospace,” which focuses on concepts that enhance the urban air mobility market.
According to ExecutiveTraveller, this is Airbus’ attempt into entering the emerging Urban Air Mobility (UAM) market. The CityBus NextGen is a fully electric airborne vehicle, which can function as a flying Uber/taxi or as a personal shuttle.
“We are on a quest to co-create an entirely new market that sustainably integrates urban air mobility into the cities while addressing environmental and social concerns. Airbus is convinced that the real challenges are as much about urban integration, public acceptance, and automated air traffic management, as about vehicle technology and business models. We build on all of the capabilities to deliver a safe, sustainable, and fully integrated service to society,” said Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even.
The eVTOL can carry four passengers, be remotely piloted, and fly up to 80 km (50 miles) at a speed of 120 km/hour (74.5 mi/hour), according to Airbus. The body of the aircraft features a V-shaped tail and fixed wings, and its unique propulsion system consists of eight electrically powered propellers. Noise reduction is a key feature of the plane, which features sound levels less than 65 dBa during fly-overs and below 70 dBa during landing.
Airbus is benefitting from years of dedicated research, innovation, two electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) demonstrators, and development on sound technology across its portfolio of products, as well as decades of experience in certifying aircraft.
