Boeing's autonomous passenger air vehicle makes maiden flight

Designed by Boeing subsidiary Aurora Flight Sciences, the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft measures 9.14 metres long and 8.53 metres wide. It is designed for fully autonomous flight from takeoff to landing and has an expected range of around 80km.

The PAV performed a controlled ascent, hover and landing during its maiden flight, which took place at Manassas, Virginia. Autonomous and ground control systems were also tested. According to Boeing, future flights will test forward, wing-borne travel, as well as the transition phase between vertical and forward-flight modes, which is considered to be the biggest engineering challenge for this type of aircraft.

"This is what revolution looks like, and it's because of autonomy," said John Langford, president and chief executive officer of Aurora Flight Sciences. "Certifiable autonomy is going to make quiet, clean and safe urban air mobility possible."

The PAV is just one of several projects under the remit of Boeing Next, the Seattle aerospace giant’s urban air mobility division. According to the company, Boeing Next is working with regulatory bodies and industry partners to develop an ecosystem where piloted and autonomous aircraft can safely operate together.