Taking advantage of the inauguration of the CityAirbus test center in Donauwörth, Germany, Airbus revealed the prototype of the NextGen, its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
The aircraft with eight electric rotors and a 12-meter wingspan is expected to fly for the first time in 2024, but still in a smaller-scale model.
The tests, according to the company, cover electric motors, flight controls and avionics.
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The CityBus will be able to fly at speeds of 120 km/h over distances of up to 80 km. Its weight is expected to be around 2 tons, but the eVTOL is not expected to start its career as a flying taxi like other competitors.
Airbus plans to apply the electric platform to emergency medical services at first.
The City NextGen has a configuration with six fixed vertical rotors for lifting and two rear horizontal rotors for propulsion.
The simplest solution is similar to that adopted by Eve, an Embraer subsidiary in the Eve-100 model, but which has four vertical rotors.
The eVTOL model will be assembled in Donauwörth, but Airbus has not yet estimated when the electric aircraft could enter service.
