The Japanese company Honda will develop a hybrid vertical take-off and landing aircraft for flights between cities. According to TechCrunch, it plans flight tests of its demonstration model in 2025, after which it will decide about mass production.
Honda has experience in creating aircraft. It produces very light HondaJet jet aircraft that can fly up to 2.66 thousand kilometers with a maximum cruising speed of 782 kilometers per hour.
In April, the Japanese company announced its goals until 2050. One of them is to create electric machines, ships and aircraft, including a vertical take-off and landing apparatus. Honda did not provide any details about the latter at that time.
The Japanese company confirmed its plans during a briefing on September 30. She stated that she was going to create a vertical take-off and landing device for long-distance flights. According to the results of her research, the biggest demand will be for devices with a range of up to 402 kilometers. Most vertical take-off and landing vehicles today fly much shorter distances. Even the Joby Aviation air taxi, which claims a record range in this class, was able to fly only 248.8 kilometers on a single charge.
Judging by the images, the Honda aircraft will be made according to a two-girder scheme. Eight propellers will be located on two beams, and two more, in the annular fairings, in the tail section. The device will be equipped with a hybrid power plant with a gas turbine generator. In the future, when the battery capacity increases, the device may become fully electric.
Honda plans to test the technology on prototypes in 2023, and in 2025 to conduct flight tests of a demonstration model. After that, she will decide whether to start mass production of the aircraft. If the decision is positive, the company hopes to certify it by 2030. Honda promises that the prices for trips in a four-seat aircraft will be lower than for business class tickets in commercial passenger planes.
In addition to the aircraft, Honda plans to develop a renewable energy system for the Moon and an avatar robot in the coming decades. Other Japanese companies, including Meltin and Telexistence .
Vasilisa Chernyavtseva
