Volocopter Receives Prerequisite Approval from EASA to Begin eVTOL Aircraft Production
Volocopter expects to launch eVTOL operations in Singapore within the next three years. (Volocopter)
Volocopter, the German air taxi and drone manufacturer, received a Production Organization Approval (POA) from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the prerequisite to beginning production of its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, the company announced in a July 6 press release. Volocopter will also be acquiring longtime partner, DG Flugzeugbau, a composite aircraft producer.
“Our ten-year partnership with DG Flugzeugbau has been an extraordinary learning experience,” Florian Reuter, CEO of Volocopter, said in a statement. “Having this legendary industry leader on our side to kick-start scalable and affordable UAM for people and cargo has been a game changer. Today marks an exciting milestone as we unify DG Flugzeugbau’s leadership in aviation production with Volocopter’s pioneering UAM goals to establish yet another crucial stepping-stone for our collective global endeavors.”
Volocopter also received design organization approval (DOA) for its aircraft in 2019 and is the only eVTOL company to hold DOA and POA from EASA. (Volocopter)
Volocopter also received design organization approval (DOA) for its aircraft in 2019 and is the only eVTOL company to hold DOA and POA from EASA, according to the release.
The acquisition of DG Flugzeugbau will be completed during the summer and then Volocopter will adapt and expand its production facilities in order to produce enough aircraft for its anticipated commercial launch, a representative from the company told Avionics International via email. Volocopter had already started producing aircraft in DG Flugzeugbau’s facilities through its previous partnership.
The acquisition will allow Volocopter to integrate DG Flugzeugbau’s aircraft production segment and its new EASA POA, according to the release. DG Aviation will be created with the remaining segment of DG Flugzeugbau and will be focused on DG and LS gliders.
The acquisition of DG Flugzeugbau will be completed during the summer and then Volocopter will adapt and expand its production facilities in order to produce enough aircraft for its anticipated commercial launch. (Volocopter)
“At DG Flugzeugbau, we have always continued to strive for perfection through unique innovation with gliders, vast aerodynamic improvements, and, for the past ten years, with Volocopter’s eVTOLs,” Holger Back, CEO of DG Aviation, said in a statement. “We see the future in these aircraft and are excited to combine a section of our company with Volocopter to invest in the future of sustainable aviation while continuing our tradition of building gliders and maintaining aircraft.”
Volocopter is working on creating an urban air mobility ecosystem that includes VoloCity, an eVTOL aircraft for intra-city missions, VoloConnect, an eVTOL for inter-city missions, VoloDrone, a drone for cargo transport, VoloPorts, vertiport sites, and VoloIQ, a digital platform.
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