#sundaythoughts - Bad luck or a lack of financially sustainable business model? Volocopter's financing challenges, and those of their competitors in Europe and North America are not new to the aerospace industry, and were to be expected given the time required and cost of designing, developing, certifying and bringing any new cleansheet aircraft to market. As with the Very Light Jet era, there will be winners and a lot of losers, which is also not uncommon in other industries.
Peter Evans
4mo
What a statement "the company appears to be struggling to turn its technological advancements into a financially sustainable business model" I think we will be hearing a lot more of this from the revolutionary 'electric air taxi' developers. IMHO, investors in this space are rich in cash, not intellect. They probably lost money in the dotcom bubble too. 🙄
Dennis Buller
4mo
Ehang is certified and its production plant is cranking. Its stock it at 18$. At some point you have to concede that its not the technology that is failing.
dec ryan
4mo
It’s not bad luck. It’s a combination of funds and ambition. I really believe that Europe is going to lose out to the USA in this important sector
Gary Mortimer
4mo
They were building authentically as well I thought. The elephant in the room for those that get stuff through certification is that other than heli and airports, the infrastructure is not there. Might as well go by helicopter. - Electric aviation is coming, I was more excited by recent magniX announcements. https://www.suasnews.com/2024/04/magnix-announces-letter-of-intent-with-harbour-air-for-50-magni650-electric-engines/
Richard Aboulafia opined in one of his newsletters that at airshows the number of eVTOL s are like a swarm of "locusts" eating up VC money. Very apt analogy. Power density isn't there, regulatory support (in the West) isn't there, infrastructure isn't there, public support isn't there (I don't want locusts flying over my house like some cyberpunk thriller movie). So tell me why anyone would be dumb enough to invest in these companies except to carve it up when it fails for whatever salvageable technology they bring?
Pawan Kakkar
4mo
It's possible the classic Egg or a Hen story, other wise apparently there is nothing wrong with the business plans involving the AAM. The timelines for the launch of personal electric aircraft seems to be a bit convoluted, we have to first build a lot of infrastructure to facilitate this form of aviation, improve on the power train and then go for manufacturing these planes. While the going might be really tough for these enthusiasts, let's not make a mistake of writing the requiem just as yet, the innate desire of flying has been a long cherished dream of the human species and the resolute ones will certainly defy all kinds of gravitational pull.
Its electrifying!
4moWould it not make more sense to focus on the cheaper certification route and more useful VoloDrone?