All-electric autonomous passenger drone completes full-scale flight test

Vahana, the vertical take-off and landing aircraft (VTOL) built by A³, Airbus' innovation outpost in Silicon Valley, successfully completed its first full-scale flight test on January 31, 2018 at the Pendleton UAS Range in Pendleton, Oregon.

Its first flight, with a duration of 53 seconds, was fully self-piloted and the vehicle completed a second flight the following day.

"Today we are celebrating a great accomplishment in aerospace innovation," said Zach Lovering, project executive of Vahana. "In just under two years, Vahana took a concept sketch on a napkin and built a full-scale, self-piloted aircraft that has successfully completed its first flight.”

According to A³, project Vahana’s initial goal is to develop the first certified electric and autonomous VTOL aircraft for use by commuters at costs comparable to land-based methods of short-range transport.

The aircraft is being designed to travel at 2-to-4 times quicker than cars or traffic and have a flight range of approximately 50 miles. Future iterations could see the aircraft being adopted for a number of roles, including cargo delivery and air ambulance.