VoltAero will participate in test flights in the Netherlands to help define operational procedures and passenger experience with electric aircraft in inter-regional air transportation as part of the 18 partner Power Up group, which aims to facilitate the introduction of electric regional air mobility in Europe.
Other aviation and mobility organisations joining Power Up include Eindhoven Airport, Groningen Airport Eelde, Lelystad Airport, Maastricht Aachen Airport, and Rotterdam The Hague Airport, as well as with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, the Dutch Railways, the Netherlands Aerospace Centre and several consultancies.
“The Power Up initiative is an excellent opportunity to show how Cassio and other e‑airplanes offer the solution to introducing a new era of efficient air mobility with low-carbon emissions and reduced noise,” said Jean Botti, VoltAero’s CEO and Chief Technology Officer.
VoltAero’s Cassio aircraft is designed for regional commercial operators, air taxi/charter companies and private owners, as well as in utility-category service for cargo, postal delivery and medical evacuation (Medevac) applications.
By integrating VoltAero’s patented electric-hybrid propulsion system into the company’s purpose-designed airframe, Cassio will deliver an order of magnitude higher performance as compared to the current competition, and provide significantly lower operational costs.
The VoltAero propulsion concept utilises an electric motor in the aft fuselage-mounted hybrid propulsion unit for all-electric power during taxi, takeoff, primary flight if the distance travelled is less than 150 km, and landing.
The hybrid internal combustion engine comes into play as a range extender, recharging the batteries while in flight. Additionally, it serves as a backup in the event of a problem with the electric propulsion, ensuring true fail-safe functionality.
VoltAero’s first production aircraft version will be the Cassio 330, with a four/five-seat interior configuration and operating on a combined electric-hybrid propulsion power of 330 kilowatts.
It is to be followed by the six-seat Cassio 480 with a combined electric-hybrid propulsion power of 480 kilowatts, and the Cassio 600 – sized at a 10/12-seat capacity with electric-hybrid propulsion power of 600 kilowatts.
Earlier this month, VoltAero marked another important step toward the full-scale production of its Cassio electric-hybrid aircraft family with groundbreaking for a final assembly line at Rochefort Airport in the Charente-Maritime department of France’s Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.
