Flying Taxi Suffers “Significant Structural Damage” In Crash

Update: 

Bloomberg confirmed Vertical Aerospace’s electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft crashed earlier this week, forcing the startup to suspend test flights until regulators complete an investigation. 

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There is a big push to get electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft off the ground as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) established a new framework that prepares the US for flying taxis by 2028. Hundreds of companies are developing eVTOL designs; some are even testing these new high-tech aircraft. 

Many tests are going smoothly, but one in the UK did not. Vertical Aerospace’s eVTOL crashed this week, according to an image posted on “X,” formerly known as Twitter, by journalist Charlotte Bailey.

Bailey said the VX4 prototype “crashed from approximately 20ft during an unmanned inflight shutdown as part of its ongoing testing program.” She said the image shows the aircraft suffered “significant structural damage.” 

Bailey also penned a note about the eVTOL crash in the aviation blog Pilot Magazine that outlined an inconvenient truth about eVTOLs, similar to electric vehicles:

Fire crews were immediately called to the scene, described as being “concerned” for the safety of the lithium-ion batteries on board. The airfield was briefly shut although has since reopened, with traffic using the runway beyond the south side of the airfield where the crash occurred.

Vertical Aerospace’s eVTOL isn’t the first crash. Bloomberg noted last year that several eVTOL testing accidents occurred with other companies. Some of these accidents were battery fires. 

eVTOLs present similar challenges facing EVs on the ground: battery fries.