Key highlights:
- The Alauda Airspeeder Mk3, a four-meter-long multicopter, conducts unmanned test flights.
- These flights took place at undisclosed test locations in South Australia’s outback.
- The company intends to stage races with unmanned cars later this year.
Approximately 118 years after the Wright Brothers pioneered mankind’s first attempt into powered flight, Airspeeder has taken its initial steps with unmanned flights of its electric Alauda Mk3.
Airspeeder was conceived in the summer of 2019 by entrepreneur Matthew Pearson, who expressed his desire to “create the world’s first racing series for electric flying vehicles.” The initial flights of the eVTOL Alauda Mk3 bring the objective of three remotely piloted races in 2021 one step closer to reality.
These historic maiden flights took place at undisclosed test locations in South Australia’s outback, under the supervision of Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). The Alauda team collaborated with the regulator throughout the development phase to guarantee compliance with all needed processes while establishing robust safety standards. Due to the success of these flights, the uncrewed electric flying vehicle Grand Prix will be held in 2021 at three yet-to-be-announced foreign venues.
Industry tech leaders essential to the design and build of Alauda
Pearson assembled a world-class team of technical specialists, engineers, and designers from F1, performance automotive, and civil and military aviation backgrounds, including McLaren, Brabham, Boeing, Jaguar, and Rolls-Royce, to develop and manufacture the eVTOL Alauda Mk3.
Alauda’s technical headquarters are in Adelaide, South Australia, while its business headquarters are in London. From there, CCO Jack Withinshaw has headed a team that has formed alliances with some of the most well-known global supporters of competitive racing. Acronis, EQUALS, DHL, and IWC Schaffhausen are among the companies involved.
Crewed Series 2022 and other applications
Following the success of these flights, the uncrewed electric flying vehicle Grand Prix will take place in 2021 in three yet-to-be-announced foreign venues, with the upcoming crewed series set to race around the world in 2022.
Elite pilots from aviation, motorsport, and eSports backgrounds will compete to remotely operate the world’s only racing electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) craft. These pilots will race their Speeders through electronically controlled, Augmented Reality enabled sky-tracks. Audiences will be able to view the entire dynamic potential of vehicles with better thrust-to-weight ratios than an F15 fighter aircraft via digital broadcasts.
Morgan Stanley predicts that this technology will be worth $1.5 trillion by 2040, and it is already finding useful uses in air logistics and remote medical treatment. It also has the ability to free cities from traffic congestion through clean-air passenger applications such as air taxis.
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