VERTICAL AEROSPACE IS AT THE EDGE OF TECHNOLOGY WITH ITS NEW EVTOL

Bristol-based Vertical Aerospace, established by energy entrepreneur Steven Fitzpatrick in 2016, is aiming to revolutionise urban air mobility and electrify air travel.

After founding OVO Energy in 2009, now one of the UK’s largest energy retailers with 4.5 million customers, Stephen set up Vertical Aerospace to build the world’s most advanced electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to help decarbonise air travel using the best technologies from across the aviation, energy and automotive industries.

Vertical is working with world-leading suppliers such as engineering company Rolls-Royce, which is working on its electric propulsion unit. Honeywell is developing the avionics and flight controls and fuselage development is being undertaken by Leonardo, with wing development by GKN. Materials company Solvay and ultra-high power cell maker Molicel are also in the team to build the VX4, a piloted vehicle capable of carrying four passengers at up to 200mph.

The company successfully completed its first airborne test last September and has set itself further milestones this year, to enable its VX4 to reach higher altitudes and speeds.

Even without a commercial aircraft, such is the confidence invested in his technology, Stephen already has an order book of 1,400 aircraft with prospective customers including Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines, AirAsia and Japan Airlines.

But working at the sharp edge of technology is tough. The company, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021, reported a net operating loss of £23 million for the three months ended March 31 this year, higher than its loss of £18 million for the same period last year.

The company said this reflects investments in its electric battery technology, achievement of eVTOL Design Organisation Approval with the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), in addition to design and test capabilities associated with its VX4 prototype aircraft.

It’s also reportedly delayed certification of the VX4 from 2025 to 2026, because discussions are ongoing with the authorities on compliance methods for the new technology – unsurprising when you’re developing world-first innovations.

Stephen Fitzpatrick remains upbeat. He said: “We have achieved so much in this first quarter. I am so proud of the team as we were granted our Design Organisation Approval from the CAA affirming our home regulator’s confidence in our capabilities. While we have revised our target certification date, the diligence and precision of the scoping work gives us ever more confidence that our strategy is the right one, and that we will be one of the first movers in the eVTOL market.”

Vertical Aerospace has around 300 employees around the world, most of whom are engineers based in its Bristol design, engineering and testing facility. In March it also opened the Vertical Energy Centre (VEC), believed to be the UK’s most advanced aerospace battery facility, based in Bristol.

The multi-million-pound, 15,000 sq ft facility is one of the only dedicated aerospace battery facilities in the UK. It is home to Vertical’s current 50-strong battery team – drawn from the likes of McLaren, the European Space Agency, Jaguar Land Rover, Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Dyson – who are developing proprietary battery technology that is enabling greater power to weight ratios for eVTOL flight. These frontier technologies are expected to transform what has been possible with battery technology to date.

Aerospace and defence businesses will innovate out of recession

Aerospace and defence businesses are set to innovate their way out of the looming recession to fuel future growth, according to new research from ForrestBrown, a leading UK research and development (R&D) tax relief consultancy.

The research found that more than half (59 per cent) of aerospace and defence companies invested more than £500,000 in innovation in the last year with this showing no signs of slowing down despite the impending economic recession.

In fact, the survey revealed that 56 per cent of such companies anticipate increasing their investment in innovation should a recession occur in the next year, rather than tightening the purse strings.

This echoes the strategy the sector adopted post-Brexit, when the survey shows that 48 per cent of businesses increased their investment in R&D, responding to economic uncertainty by embracing innovative ways of thinking to explore new products and services.

Factors including the imperative to reduce the environmental impact of flying have made innovation an ongoing priority. This is reflected in the specialist personnel employed across the industry, with 30 per cent of A&D companies having between 11 and 300 people on the payroll to drive their innovation strategy.

Sara Brigden, Managing Director at ForrestBrown said: "The UK’s aerospace and defence businesses have been at the forefront of innovation for a long time, consistently delivering game-changing technological advances.

"Despite the economic tides turning, it’s encouraging to see firms increasing investment in innovation to maintain this track record.”