The SureFly is a two-seat hybrid e
VTOL
A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft is one that can take off and land vertically without relying on a runway. This classification can include a variety of types of aircraft including helicopters as well as thrust-vectoring fixed-win ...
aircraft designed by American truck-manufacturer
Workhorse Group
Workhorse Group Incorporated, originally AMP Electric Vehicles, is an original equipment manufacturer and technology company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. Workhorse makes electric delivery vans, drones, and telematics software designe ...
, before the program was bought by
Moog Inc.
Moog ( ) is an American-based designer and manufacturer of electric, electro-hydraulic and hydraulic motion, controls and systems for applications in aerospace, defense, industrial and medical devices. The company operates under four segments: a ...
for $5 million in December 2019.
Design
The
hybrid electric
A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a type of hybrid vehicle that combines a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) system with an Electric motor, electric propulsion system (hybrid vehicle drivetrain). The presence of the electric powertr ...
has a 200-hp gasoline generator giving up to range over 1 hour.
It has four propeller arms, each with two electric
contra-rotating propellers
Aircraft equipped with contra-rotating propellers, also referred to as CRP, coaxial contra-rotating propellers, or high-speed propellers, apply the maximum power of usually a single piston or turboprop engine to drive a pair of coaxial propell ...
powered by a
gas turbine
A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the directi ...
or
piston engine
A reciprocating engine, also often known as a piston engine, is typically a heat engine that uses one or more reciprocating pistons to convert high temperature and high pressure into a rotating motion. This article describes the common featu ...
generator along with a
battery pack
A battery pack is a set of any number of (preferably) identical batteries or individual battery cells. They may be configured in a series, parallel or a mixture of both to deliver the desired voltage, capacity, or power density. The term battery ...
.
Targeting a price of $200,000, it can lift a payload and includes a
ballistic parachute
A ballistic parachute, ballistic reserve parachute, or emergency ballistic reserve parachute, is a parachute ejected from its casing by a small explosion, much like that used in an ejection seat. The advantage of the ballistic parachute over a co ...
.
[
The SureFly would operate as a conventional helicopter, like the similarly priced two-seat ]Robinson R22
The Robinson R22 is a two-seat, two-bladed, single-engine light utility helicopter manufactured by Robinson Helicopter Company. It was designed in 1973 by Frank D. Robinson, and has been in production since 1979.
Development
The majority of fli ...
, but would be easier to fly and safer with its integral parachute.
SureFly has taken refundable $1,000 deposits but does not specify a delivery date, and aims to produce 1,000 per year.[
The hybrid design is simpler than a pure gasoline drivetrain by eliminating the gearboxes and rotor linkages of a traditional helicopter, while security is higher through two redundant motors. Each propeller blade is driven directly by an independent ]electric motor
An electric motor is an Electric machine, electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a Electromagneti ...
and flight control is achieved by varying the RPM
Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines.
Standards
ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...
of each blade to achieve thrust vectoring
Thrust vectoring, also known as thrust vector control (TVC), is the ability of an aircraft, rocket, or other vehicle to manipulate the direction of the thrust from its engine(s) or motor(s) to control the attitude or angular velocity of the v ...
and prevailing torque changes across the vehicle, similar to smaller multirotor
A multirotor or multicopter is a rotorcraft with more than two lift-generating rotors. An advantage of multirotor aircraft is the simpler rotor mechanics required for flight control. Unlike single- and double-rotor helicopters which use complex ...
unmanned aerial vehicle
An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controller ...
s.
It was later upgraded with a 200-kW generator, a payload capability and up to range over 2 hours.
Development
After hundreds of tethered flights testing noise, battery and flight controls, it made a free first flight
The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets.
The maiden flight of a new aircraft type is alwa ...
in spring 2018, reaching four feet during 10 seconds.
Flight test
Flight testing is a branch of aeronautical engineering that develops specialist equipment required for testing aircraft behaviour and systems. Instrumentation systems are developed using proprietary transducers and data acquisition systems. D ...
s will expand the flight envelope
In aerodynamics, the flight envelope, service envelope, or performance envelope of an aircraft or spacecraft refers to the capabilities of a design in terms of airspeed and load factor or atmospheric density, often simplified to altitude. The t ...
while FAA type certification
A type certificate signifies the airworthiness of a particular category of aircraft, according to its manufacturing design (''type design''). It confirms that the aircraft of a new type intended for serial production, is in compliance with applica ...
advances.
Workhorse intends to spin off SureFly into a separate company, valuing it $33 million.Marathon Asset Management
Marathon Asset Management, LP is an investment manager focused on opportunistic investing in credit and fixed income markets globally. Marathon manages a family of investment programs principally focused on credit strategies including hedge funds, ...
, requires a $4 million liquidity for May 31, 2019.Moog Inc.
Moog ( ) is an American-based designer and manufacturer of electric, electro-hydraulic and hydraulic motion, controls and systems for applications in aerospace, defense, industrial and medical devices. The company operates under four segments: a ...
bought the SureFly program for $5 million, interested by the electric power systems more than the aircraft, and will use it as an autonomous demonstrator.
Specifications
See also
References
External links
* {{official website, http://sureflyaero.com/
Electric helicopters
Proposed aircraft of the United States