The XTI TriFan 600 is a
vertical takeoff and landing
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 currently under development by
XTI Aircraft Company.
Development
In June 2017, a 65%-scale proof-of-concept began fabrication at
Placerville Airport, California, to validate the aircraft's configuration.
Trek Aerospace manufactured the ducts and assembled the 65%-scale demonstrator, only powered by an XTI-Trek Aerospace
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 ...
. MGM Compro, based in Zlín, Czech Republic, supplied its
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 ...
s and controllers.
It was completed in December 2018 and unveiled in January 2019.
Between January and April 2019, the prototype was ground tested to validate the electric motors, battery systems, ducts, propellers,
flight control
A conventional fixed-wing aircraft flight control system consists of flight control surfaces, the respective cockpit controls, connecting linkages, and the necessary operating mechanisms to control an aircraft's direction in flight. Aircraft e ...
s, systems, and instrumentation. It first flew tethered on May 2, 2019, and conducted multiple controlled hovers.
Untethered hovering, forward wing-borne flight, and the transition between should follow and four to six months of subsequent testing is scheduled on Deseret UAS's
Tekoi
Tekoi Rocket Test Range, or Tekoi, is a former solid fuel rocket motor test and calibration site operated by Hercules Aerospace near the Utah Test and Training Range in Utah's West Desert, approximately west of Salt Lake City, Utah. It is locate ...
test site near
Tooele, Utah
Tooele ( ) is a city in Tooele County in the U.S. state of Utah. The population was 35,742 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Tooele County. Located approximately 30 minutes southwest of Salt Lake City, Tooele is known for Tooele Army ...
.
[
The first full-scale prototype should begin construction before May 2020 and fly at the end of the year.
By May 2019, XTI had 77 reservations, for a $500 million value or $ million for each aircraft.
Development is funded by XTI founder David Brody, ]private equity
In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a ty ...
investors, and crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...
stakeholders.
A funding round took place in September 2018; another should raise $25 million and a third will seek $75 million, for a $175 million total development cost.GE Catalyst
The General Electric Catalyst (formerly Advanced Turboprop, or ATP) is a turboprop engine by GE Aviation.
It was announced on 16 November 2015 and will power the Beechcraft Denali, it first ran on December 22, 2017, and should be certified in 20 ...
was selected to power the aircraft.
Design
The TriFan 600 is a six-seat fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air flying machine, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using wings that generate lift caused by the aircraft's forward airspeed and the shape of the wings. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinc ...
powered by three ducted fan
In aeronautics, a ducted fan is a thrust-generating mechanical fan or propeller mounted within a cylindrical duct or shroud. Other terms include ducted propeller or shrouded propeller. When used in vertical takeoff and landing
(VTOL) applicatio ...
s: two pivoting on the wing and one in the aft fuselage, lifting the aircraft in
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 ...
.
It will have a 37.7 ft (11.5 m) wingspan and a 38.7 ft (11.8 m) length, with single 6 ft (1.8 m) diameter propeller
A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...
s in the wing ducts and two 5 ft (1.5 m) diameter co-axial propellers in the aft duct.[
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 ...
propulsion system include a single 1,000 shp (745 kW) Honeywell HTS900
The Honeywell HTS900 is an American turboshaft engine produced by Honeywell Aerospace. A growth version of the LTS101 which it is designed to replace, the HTS900 is in the 1,000 shp (745 kW) class.
At the October 2018 NBAA convention, it w ...
turboshaft driving three generators, powering two 350 hp (260 kW) electric motors for the wing ducts and one each for the aft propellers.
It should reach 340 kn (630 km/h) and cross 650 nmi (1,200 km) in VTOL operations or 1,200 nmi (2,200 km) from a runway.[
]
Specifications
See also
References
External links
*
* {{cite news , url= https://evtol.news/2020/03/06/xti-aircrafts-trifan-600-development-continues/ , title= XTI Aircraft's TriFan 600 Development Continues , author= Robert W. Moorman , work= Vertiflite
Hybrid electric aircraft
Tilting ducted fan aircraft