The FAA on Thursday issued final airworthiness criteria for the company’s Midnight Model M001, making the aircraft only the second eVTOL air taxi to achieve that regulatory milestone in the U.S. The approval lays out the standards the regulator will use to gauge the aircraft’s ability to integrate into U.S. airspace. Archer aims to launch Midnight air taxi routes in New York and Chicago in partnership with United Airlines as soon as next year.

The manufacturer’s unique, zero-emission aircraft is designed for a pilot to fly as many as four passengers on back-to-back, 10-to-20-minute flights. The air taxi takes off vertically like a helicopter but cruises at up to 150 mph (130 knots) using a combination of fixed wings and forward propellers. Its optimal range is 10 to 50 sm (8.7 to 43 nm), but it can fly as far as 100 sm (87 nm) on a single charge.

Midnight has a total of 12 propellers, six of which are “tilt props” that can be positioned vertically or horizontally to aid in takeoff, landing, or forward flight. Propulsion is generated by six proprietary lithium-ion battery packs, each powering a pair of electric engines. The result, Archer claims on its webpage, is flights that are “up to 100 times quieter than a helicopter.”

The air taxi uses fly-by-wire flight controls and will be certified in the powered-lift category, a relatively new classification that still requires final FAA regulations on pilot certification. Archer claims it will ultimately be cost competitive with ground-based rideshare services, such as Uber and Lyft, on trips to and from urban centers and airports.

The FAA in December 2022 issued Archer’s proposed airworthiness criteria, allowing stakeholders and members of the public to comment on the prospective certification requirements. Competitor Joby Aviation received its own proposed requirements one month prior and is the only other eVTOL manufacturer to obtain final airworthiness criteria from the regulator, issued in March.

Archer’s finalized criteria are scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on Friday, where they will be visible to the public.

“Midnight is one giant step closer to taking passengers into the sky in the coming years in the U.S.,” said Billy Nolen, chief regulatory affairs officer at Archer and a former FAA administrator. “Thank you to the team at the FAA for their continued hard work in support of making the electrification of aviation a reality.”

The issuance of final airworthiness criteria allows Archer to proceed to for-credit flight testing with the regulator, a key step in the type certification process. For-credit testing will allow the FAA to gauge Midnight’s performance against the standards released Thursday, which could result in the aircraft being deemed safe to fly in U.S. skies.

Archer in February began building three type-conforming aircraft prototypes to be used in those evaluations. The manufacturer said Thursday that the first of those models will begin piloted flight testing later this year, followed by for-credit FAA testing.

“[Thursday’s] milestone adds significant momentum to Midnight’s certification program as we further ramp up our for-credit testing efforts with the FAA,” said Eric Wright, head of certification for Archer.

So far, only China’s EHang has managed to obtain type certification for an eVTOL air taxi from an aviation regulator, the country’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC). The manufacturer in December made the world’s first passenger-carrying eVTOL flight, completing a pair of commercial demonstrations in China.

German manufacturers Lilium and Volocopter also aim to launch commercial air taxi services in the next few years.

But Archer and Joby’s models are expected to be the first to take flight in the U.S., starting with major metro areas such as New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The companies have partnerships with major U.S. airlines, Archer with United and Joby with Delta Air Lines, though Joby intends to operate its own air taxi.

The manufacturers now have about a year and a half to meet their stated launch target of 2025. But the publication of final airworthiness criteria certainly gives them a lift.

Like this story? We think you’ll also like the Future of FLYING newsletter sent every Thursday afternoon. Sign up now.

The post FAA Issues Final Airworthiness Criteria for Archer Midnight Air Taxi appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Now for this week’s top story:

NFL Drone Incursions Prompt Super Bowl Flight Restrictions

What happened? A recent incident involving a rogue drone pilot at an NFL game has drawn the attention of the FAA, which announced a temporary flight restriction (TFR) within 2 nm of Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, the venue for Super Bowl LVIII between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

The incident: A Pennsylvania man faces felony federal charges and up to four years in prison for flying an unlicensed drone at the AFC championship game on January 28, pitting the Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. The pilot also did not possess a remote pilot certificate.

TFRs around stadiums are standard during NFL regular-season and playoff games since 9/11, typically restricting drones that fly at or below 3,000 feet agl within 3 nm of any venue that seats 30,000 or more. But stadiums are often ill-equipped to enforce the rules, and only the FBI and Department of Homeland Security have the authority to jam or bring the drones down.

Super Bowl Security: Given a rise in drone-related incursions, the FAA this week outlined the TFR in place around Allegiant Stadium and the surrounding area. Flights of all kinds will be heavily restricted on game day, with various other limitations in place throughout the week. The agency also released guidelines for GA pilots and other pilots.

Like traditional pilots, drone pilots who enter the TFR without permission could face criminal prosecution or fines in excess of $30,000, or their drone may be confiscated. The worries are not unfounded. During Super Bowl LIII between the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams in 2019, a drone nearly caused a midair collision with Air Force F-16s over Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Quick quote: “Without a change in federal law, mass gatherings will remain at risk from malicious and unauthorized drone operations. For more than a year, we have been calling for passage of the bipartisan Safeguarding the Homeland from the Threats Posed by Unmanned Aircraft Systems Act, which would empower state and local law enforcement to safely mitigate drones…It’s time for Congress to act,” the NFL said in a statement to FLYING.

My take: The bill the NFL spokesperson is referring to, introduced in May, would extend FBI and DHS drone takedown authority to officials who can act more quickly, or who may even be on-site. The legislation has been endorsed by the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, and NCAA.

And given how common the issue has become, the bill may be necessary. Cathy Lanier, NFL chief of security, estimated there were some 2,500 drone-related incursions over stadiums during the league’s 2022 season—nearly double the 1,300 such incidents the season prior. None of these have resulted in injury. But a few drones have dropped items such as leaflets into crowds of spectators, raising alarm bells about what else they could carry.

Officials are also wary of rogue drones at airports. Occasionally, these have led to mass flight delays or cancellations, including at the two largest airports in the U.K. Increasingly, drones have been reported to smuggle contraband or weapons into prisons or across the U.S. southern border.

Deep dive: Could One Pilot’s Mistake Deter Rogue Drones at the Super Bowl?

In Other News…

Airbus Charts Path for Electric Air Taxi Rollout in Italy

What happened? The manufacturer of popular aircraft such as the A320 family also has its sights set on advanced air mobility (AAM). Airbus this week added two new partners to its collaboration with ITA Airways, the flag carrier of Italy, with an eye toward standing up an AAM ecosystem in the Mediterranean country, including electric aircraft, chargers, and vertiports.

Gli aerotaxi: That’s Italian for “the air taxis,” and Airbus’ electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) CityAirbus NextGen could fly in the country in the next few years. The manufacturer expects to obtain European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) CS-23 certification for the air taxi in 2025, it has said previously.

On February 1, Airbus and ITA added vertiport operator UrbanV and green energy firm Enel—which will assist airfields with the transition to electric infrastructure—to the partnership. Without a vast network of electric aircraft chargers and vertiports, air taxis will have a difficult time scaling. The electric ground vehicle industry has addressed the issue by installing universally accessible systems nationwide.

Deep dive: Airbus Expands Partnership for Italy Air Taxi Rollout

Air Taxi Manufacturer EHang Reveals Low $330K Price Tag for Flagship Model

What happened? Chinese eVTOL manufacturer EHang—which in October obtained the world’s first type certificate for an air taxi, its flagship EH216-S—plans to sell the aircraft for just $330,000 in China. Though the price tag is only intended for the firm’s home country, EHang intends to expand nationwide as early as this year, and it could undercut competitors.

The air taxi landscape: Outside of Lilium and its $10 million Pioneer Edition Jet, few of EHang’s competitors have publicly stated price tags for their air taxi designs. But using available information and a bit of math, it’s possible to estimate where EHang stands.

United Airlines’ purchase of up to 200 Archer Aviation Midnight aircraft for $1 billion, for example, equates to $5 million per unit. Per a 2021 investor presentation, rival Joby Aviation estimated its S4 will cost about $1.5 million each to produce. And based on previously announced aircraft orders, Beta Technologies’ Alia sells for about $4 million. Other players are also looking in this range, which is in a different stratosphere from EHang’s $330,000 list price.

Deep Dive: EHang Reveals Low $330K Price Tag for Self-Flying Electric Air Taxi

And a Few More Headlines:

• Archer has begun building three type-conforming Midnight aircraft to use in for-credit FAA testing later this year.

• Space tourism business Virgin Galactic is grounded by the FAA after an alignment pin detached during its latest mission.

• Beta and Bristow Group demonstrated the former’s Alia conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) aircraft.

• Hybrid-electric airplane manufacturer Heart Aerospace raised $107 million in a series B round.

• Drone racing has been confirmed as an event at The World Games 2025, the lesser-known sibling of the Olympic Games.

On the Horizon…

There’s more drone-related legislation making its way onto Capitol Hill.

The Drone Evaluation to Eliminate Cyber Threats Act of 2024 (DETECT Act), introduced Wednesday by Senators Mark Warner (D-Va.) and John Thune (R-S.C.), calls on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) within the Department of Commerce to create cybersecurity guidelines for government use of drones.

Among other things, DETECT would set cybersecurity guidelines for all U.S. government agencies, prohibiting them from acquiring drones that don’t fit the standards. It also directs the Office of Management and Budget to enforce the rules whenever they are codified. Warner and Thune previously introduced several bills taking aim at the perceived threat of drones manufactured in China.

The FAA too has its eye on drones. The regulator on Thursday released its final report from the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Detection and Mitigating Systems Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC). That’s a mouthful, but essentially, the ARC’s recommendations could align stakeholders in regards to the way they monitor drones and take down rogue aircraft. The ARC comprises representatives from more than 50 groups in the crewed and uncrewed aviation communities, government entities, law enforcement, subject matter experts, and others.

While the final UAS Detecting and Mitigating Systems report was welcomed with open arms by groups such as the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI), the FAA still awaits reauthorization. This week, members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure committee called on new FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker to “pick up the slack,” arguing that portions of the House-approved bill could be implemented by the agency without congressional authority.

Mark Your Calendars

Each week, I’ll be running through a list of upcoming industry events. The 11th Annual eVTOL Symposium wrapped up Thursday in Silicon Valley, California, but here are a few conferences to keep an eye on:

• Drone Show Korea 2024—March 6-8 in Busan, South Korea
• World’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Conference—March 17-19 in Jerusalem
• AUVSI Xponential 2024—April 22-25 in San Diego 
• Vertical Flight Society’s Forum 80—May 7-9 in Montreal

Tweet of the Week

Want to see your tweet here next week? Have comments or feedback? Share your thoughts on X (formerly Twitter) and tag me (@jack_daleo)! Or check out FLYING’s media accounts:

X (formerly Twitter): FLYING Magazine (@FlyingMagazine) / X

Facebook: FLYING Magazine – Home (facebook.com)

Instagram: FLYING Magazine (@flyingmagazine) • Instagram photos and videos

I want to hear your questions, comments, concerns, and criticisms about everything in the modern flying space, whether they’re about a new drone you just bought or the future of space exploration. Reach out to jack@flying.media or tweet me @jack_daleo with your thoughts.

The post The FAA’s Plan to Stop Drones From Spoiling the Super Bowl appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

On Wednesday, San Francisco-based Xwing partnered with Swiss firm Daedalean in a bid to accelerate both companies’ path to market. The intelligent systems developers agreed to share data, knowledge, and processes around artificial intelligence and machine learning as a way to harmonize their approaches to certification.

Xwing makes modular systems designed to integrate with a wide variety of aircraft serving use cases from logistics to aerial firefighting. The firm works with aircraft operators, manufacturers, and government and defense customers to enable ground-supervised flights without a pilot onboard. In April, the company’s Superpilot unmanned aircraft system (UAS) became the first standard category large UAS to receive official FAA project designation.

“At Xwing, we balance our commitment to a strong safety culture with our push for technical innovation,” said Maxime Gariel, president and chief technology officer of Xwing. “Our collaboration with Daedalean underscores this philosophy and the importance we place on sharing data, knowledge, and processes to inform a credible path forward toward certification for the industry as a whole as we work closely with regulators.”

Daedalean , similarly, offers machine learning-based avionics systems for civil aircraft. Through a collaboration with Avidyne, it’s working to certify and bring to market the first such system for general aviation: Pilot Eye, a solution that visually detects non-cooperative traffic. It too has a relationship with the FAA, having published a joint report with the regulator in 2022.

“In this emerging industry, it’s as crucial to collaborate with fellow pioneers as it is to partner with regulators around the world,” said Luuk van Dijk, co-founder and CEO of Daedalean. “With this shared undertaking, we will be able to demonstrate that increasing safety is driving innovation and that a collaborative approach to harmonize regulations and standards ensures that best practices are universally adopted.”

Both companies are “working closely” with the FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to certify their machine learning-based safety-critical systems, a category of tech which so far has not appeared on any civil aircraft. The move to autonomy will require a shift in the way regulators certify hardware and software for the cockpit. 

Accordingly, Xwing and Daedalean agreed that creating consensus on their design assurance approaches—via information sharing—is the best way to speed the development of certification guidelines. The partners also believe their collaboration will deliver safer standards than if they worked separately.

Each company has released blueprints of their approach to certification, which they hope will guide regulators as they work to establish an acceptable means of compliance.

Xwing’s Formal and Practical Elements for the Certification of Machine Learning Systems, for example, attempts to outline a model-agnostic, tool-independent framework that could apply to any use case.

Similarly, Daedalean’s Concepts of Design Assurance for Neural Networks, published jointly with EASA, looks to set industry-wide guidance on developing machine learning systems. Already, EASA has used its findings to draft the first usable guidance for Level 1 machine learning applications.

Although those two frameworks were developed independently, Xwing and Daedalean concurred that sharing their expertise will lead to higher levels of safety, and quicker.

In addition to its relationship with the FAA, Xwing owns a contract from AFWERX, the innovation arm of the U.S. Air Force, to trial its Superpilot system aboard a crewed Cessna 208 Caravan. Pilots will offer feedback on its usability. The company was also contracted by NASA to build an autonomous flight safety management system.

Simultaneously, Daedalian is working to ensure its Pilot Eye technology complies with Aerospace Recommended Practice, DO-178C, and field-programmable gate array standards. Partner Avidyne, meanwhile, has applied for a supplemental type certificate for Pilot Eye with the FAA, with concurrent validation from EASA.

Like this story? We think you’ll also like the Future of FLYING newsletter sent every Thursday afternoon. Sign up now.

The post Autonomous Flight Leaders Join Forces in Bid to Speed Certification appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

Now for this week’s top story:

Hamas Used Drone Swarms to Overwhelm Israeli Defenses

What happened? After more than two years of fighting in Russia and Ukraine, the world has seen what drones are capable of on the battlefield. Naturally, it raises alarm bells when the technology ends up in the wrong hands, as was the case on Saturday when Hamas launched a terror attack on Israeli civilians, killing hundreds. Casualties have since risen to the thousands.

What Hamas is working with: In short, the terrorist group deployed a swarm of drones in conjunction with land and sea attacks to catch Israel’s defenses off guard. Drone technology from China’s DJI—and reportedly some developed with the help of Iran—was used to hit strategic targets (such as the country’s central base for counter-drone operations) and civilians.

Some of the technology—including powered hang gliders that were used to transport militants over Israel’s billion-dollar border wall—raised eyebrows for current and former intelligence officials, who claim the attacks would not have been possible without Iran’s support. Hezbollah and the Houthis, two other terrorist groups and Iran proxies, could also enter the conflict.

How Israel could respond: In addition to its border wall, Israel deploys counter-drone systems such as the Iron Dome, which is designed to shoot down projectiles over large, populated areas. But these systems were overwhelmed by thousands of Hamas drones, rendering them ineffective. The aerial distraction also enabled attacks on the ground and by sea.

However, with Hamas’ capabilities now known, some experts believe Israel could defend future assaults more effectively. Support from the U.S. may also move the needle. American officials have no plans to put boots on the ground, but the government will send ships, counter-drone technology, and munitions to assist the Israeli Defense Forces.

Quick quote: “Directly comparing the drones of each side is a bit like comparing rifles on each side. The U.S. M-16 was far superior to the AK-47, yet that did not yield a U.S. victory in the Vietnam War, for example […] What matters here is the accessibility of the technology (even in more primitive forms), and how well it is used,” professor Audrey Kurth Cronin, director of Carnegie Mellon University’s Institute for Security and Technology, told FLYING.

My take: Above all, Hamas’ surprise attack on Israeli civilians validates what we’ve seen in Russia and Ukraine: In the wrong hands, drones can be a force for evil—and an effective one at that.

There are no easy answers here. The drones deployed by Hamas were small, cheap, plentiful, and likely designed or delivered by Iran. The fact that rudimentary technology could be used to such effect (and obtained rather easily from a widely sanctioned country) sets a dangerous precedent. Already, Israel has retaliated against thousands of civilian deaths by deploying its own swarms of drones, which have now killed more than 1,000 Palestinian civilians.

Though Hamas incited the growing conflict, regular people in both Israel and Palestine—through no fault of their own—are now threatened by sudden, deadly drone strikes. And with global superpowers now stockpiling the tiny aircraft, casualties of war may be more severe than ever.

Deep dive: Deadly Siege Marks Hamas’ Most Effective Use of Combat Drone Swarm

In Other News…

Wing Shows Us How It’s Delivered

What happened? If you follow me on X, formerly Twitter (@jack_daleo), you’ve seen me post about Wing and Walmart’s Dallas drone delivery service, which I got the chance to see in action last week at UP.Summit. But for the uninitiated, I posted a deep dive of the operation on FLYING Digital this week—here are the highlights.

How It’s Delivered: One thing that stood out to me—and that a spokesperson made sure to emphasize—was Wing’s ability to fit into Walmart’s workflows. The whole operation is run from a fenced area in the parking lot of a Supercenter, about the size of a tennis court. All Walmart associates need to do is pack orders and walk them over to the Wing staffers.

As for the drone delivery personnel, they didn’t have much to do either. The Wing system takes orders, assigns drones, plots flight plans, performs health checks, and responds to contingencies almost entirely on its own. Soon, the Wing Delivery Network and AutoLoader, which CEO Adam Woodworth detailed at UP.Summit, will add more autonomy to the service.

Deep dive: How It’s Delivered: Wing Gives Us a Glimpse of a Future With Drone Delivery

Archer Nabs Financing for ‘World’s Largest’ eVTOL Production Plant

What happened? Before ferrying passengers to and from airports in Chicago and the New York City metro area in partnership with United, Archer Aviation will first need to produce its eVTOL in numbers. Earlier this year, the firm broke ground on a mass manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia. Now, it’s secured the funding—$65 million from Synovus Bank—to complete it.

Cheap volume: Initially, Archer’s facility is expected to span 350,000 square feet and produce up to 650 aircraft per year. That’s more than any of its competitors are planning to put out. Eventually, the company said the site could grow to 900,000 square feet, churning out over 2,000 Midnight eVTOLs annually.

Interestingly, Archer claims it will be able to do this while keeping production costs lower than those of its competitors. That’s because the firm leverages outside aerospace companies to supply the majority of Midnight’s components. Archer will need an FAA production certificate, which will follow Midnight type certification, to begin using the facility to its full potential.

Deep Dive: Archer Secures $65 Million in Financing for ‘World’s Largest’ eVTOL Production Plant

And a Few More Headlines:

• UP.Summit 2023 in Dallas wrapped up last week, but check out our roundup of the biggest headlines.

• NASA postponed an International Space Station spacewalk after discovering a leak on the orbital complex.

• Personal eVTOL manufacturer Applied eVTOL Concepts will certify its Epiphany Transporter (what a name!) as a light sport aircraft.

• Airspace security provider Dedrone introduced a solution to enable BVLOS drone first responder operations.

• The NFL and other sports leagues are dealing with a new threat: unlicensed drones flying over stadiums.

Spotlight on…

Pivotal

Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, Boeing’s Wisk Aero, and other eVTOL air taxi companies are still years away from commercial service. That’s also true for the personal eVTOL space…with the exception of Pivotal, formerly Opener Aero.

Pivotal so far is the only eVTOL manufacturer to actually sell and deliver its aircraft to paying customers in the U.S.—in other words, they own the vehicle outright. For now, a half dozen customers own BlackFly, Pivotal’s preproduction design. But the company last week unveiled Helix, a scalable production model it hopes will become the first personal eVTOL on the market.

I got to fly a BlackFly simulator at UP.Summit in Dallas—the aircraft featured a single seat with joystick controllers on either armrest. That’s it, as far as flight controls go. UP.Summit attendees were also treated to a BlackFly demonstration flight, where the aircraft showed off transitions between vertical flight, hover, and cruise. Helix is expected to include more robust hardware and an upgraded propulsion system that will extend the aircraft’s range of uses.

Deep Dive: Opener Rebrands to Pivotal and Unveils Helix, Its First Scalable Production Aircraft

On the Horizon…

The FAA’s authority was recently extended through December 31, but that doesn’t mean FAA reauthorization is in the rearview mirror. The pressure is still on lawmakers to pass the House reauthorization bill, which calls for measures such as a final BVLOS drone rule and funding for advanced air mobility (AAM)-related activities.

On the topic of AAM, California Governor Gavin Newson signed a bill authored by Senator Anna Caballero (D-Calif.) that would create an AAM and Aviation Electrification Committee for the state. Its job would be to assess current state and federal laws and identify potential changes to ensure safe operations in California. Wisk, Archer, and other manufacturers have facilities in the state; some, such as Joby, plan to fly there.

Meanwhile, India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation loosened its drone laws by removing the passport requirement for obtaining a remote pilot certificate. The move lowers the barrier to verification to encompass documents such as a photo ID or driver’s license, which should open the industry to more drone pilots.

Mark Your Calendars

Each week, I’ll be running through a list of upcoming industry events. The FAI World Drone Racing Championship wrapped up Monday in Seoul, South Korea, but here are a few conferences to keep an eye on:

• Intergeo 2023—Tuesday through Thursday in Berlin
• Dronitaly—Wednesday through Friday in Bologna, Italy
• World’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Conference—November 12-14 in Jerusalem
• ICAO Drone Enable—December 5-7 in Montreal
• 11th Annual eVTOL Symposium—February 6-8 in Silicon Valley, California 
• AUVSI Xponential 2024—April 22-25 in San Diego 

Tweet of the Week

Want to see your tweet here next week? Have comments or feedback? Share your thoughts on X, formerly Twitter, and tag me (@jack_daleo)! Or check out FLYING’s media accounts:

X: FLYING Magazine (@FlyingMagazine) / Twitter

Facebook: FLYING Magazine – Home (facebook.com)

Instagram: FLYING Magazine (@flyingmagazine) • Instagram photos and videos

I want to hear your questions, comments, concerns, and criticisms about everything in the modern flying space, whether they’re about a new drone you just bought or the future of space exploration. Reach out to jack@flying.media or tweet me @jack_daleo with your thoughts.

The post In Israel and Gaza, Drones Change the Calculus of War appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

The agency has launched a rulemaking committee to examine the cost and development of possible future regulations related to occupant safety during commercial space flights, it announced Thursday. The 25-member committee includes representatives from the FAA and industry, including Virgin Galactic, Boeing, SpaceX, and Blue Origin.

The agency is also updating recommended practices for commercial human space flights.

The news comes as an existing Congressional prohibition on enacting regulations on commercial human spaceflight is set to expire in October. The “regulatory learning period” legislation was first enacted in 2004 and was later extended by Congress in an effort to spur innovation.

“Under current federal law, the FAA cannot regulate the safety of individuals on board a space launch or reentry vehicle absent death, serious injury, or a close call,” the FAA said.

Under current regulations, participants of commercial space flights are informed of the hazards of space travel in writing.

“The committee is expected to gather recommendations from industry and other stakeholders to help the FAA plan, conceive, and implement—when the time is right—a well-informed, thoughtful, regulatory regime for commercial human spaceflight occupant safety,” the agency said in a statement. “Recommendations will be submitted to the FAA next summer.”

The post FAA Readies to Regulate Commercial Human Spaceflight Safety appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

A few months after Archer’s Midnight and Joby’s JAS4-1 earned FAA G-1 certification bases, clearing a path to full certification for the firms’ flagship aircraft, Munich-based Lilium received one of its own Monday. With the watershed approval, the seven-seater Lilium Jet is now the only air taxi with certification bases from both the FAA and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

Lilium is working primarily with EASA, from which it received its initial CRI-A01 certification basis in 2020. But it’s also one of the few eVTOL firms targeting dual certification with the FAA under the provisions of the Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement between U.S. and EU aviation authorities. 

At present, the company says it is on track to launch global operations under these approvals by late 2025.

“This is a major step towards our goal of achieving early certification of our aircraft in key markets to support a worldwide entry into service,” said Alastair McIntosh, chief technology officer at Lilium. “We are grateful to have found great partners on both sides of the pond to electrify the skies. As per FAA practice, there will now be a collaborative process where Lilium and EASA provide feedback to the FAA before the G-1 is issued for public consultation.”

Lilium’s eVTOL jet design has actually been in development for more than half a decade, with its first proof-of-concept flight coming in 2017, followed by a full-size prototype flight two years later. In 2021, the company unveiled the flagship seven-seater model it hopes to certify with the FAA and EASA, designed for six passengers and a pilot.

The Lilium Jet is a fixed-wing design powered by 36 small electric ducted fans embedded in the wings. Because it combines fixed wings with high disc loading, the aircraft sacrifices some hover efficiency for reduced noise and greatly improved cruise efficiency.

This is all intentional. At launch, Lilium envisions its air taxi ferrying passengers between towns and inner cities, traveling distances between 25 and 125 miles (21 and 108 nm) at up to 186 mph (161 knots). And because just 5 percent of its mission energy budget is expended during the hover phase, the aircraft will spend most of its time in winged cruise.

McIntosh delves into the more technical details in a 2021 blog post.

After obtaining its CRI-A01 from EASA in 2020, Lilium in April 2022 submitted a Means of Compliance proposal outlining how it will demonstrate the seven-seater’s compliance with the agency’s certification basis. 

In a third-quarter 2022 update, Lilium reiterated it is on track for EU certification. More recently, it told investors it’s nearing an agreement with EASA on an official certification plan. Once the plan is ironed out, the final step would be a compliance demonstration with a type-conforming model, which the firm expects to take place in 2024.

Lilium should have the funding to get there. After raising close to $120 million in November, Lilium in April was reportedly in a financial pinch. But it was bailed out in May, when investors poured another $100 million into the company—with the potential for that amount to rise to $250 million. Once EASA type certification is secured, Lilium expects predelivery payments to pick up some of the slack.

The road to FAA type certification will likely be a bit more arduous. However, Lilium now has the ball rolling with two of the world’s largest aviation regulators—more than any other eVTOL manufacturer.

“Receiving the FAA G-1 demonstrates the Lilium Jet’s path to global acceptance by aerospace regulators and the expected start of global operations in late 2025 for the revolutionary Lilium Jet,” Klaus Roewe, Lilium CEO, said in a statement.

Roewe’s timeline is ambitious, given the FAA’s notoriously slow pace (Archer and Joby’s aircraft are still seeking approval). But the continued interest for Lilium Jets from airlines and aviation companies bodes well for the company’s eventual entry into service.

The post Lilium Becomes First eVTOL Manufacturer with FAA, EASA Certification Bases appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

For instance, a common one that comes up early in instrument training or even getting recurrent is whether you have to fly all of your approaches to the DA or MDA or if you could break them off after crossing the final approach fix and still have them count. You’ll never see this addressed in the FARs or AIM, but the question is valid and makes you pause for a second.

It is impractical that the existing regulations can’t fully account for all possibilities or situations.

Thankfully, this isn’t a new phenomenon, and there’s a solution for pilots: The FAA’s legal interpretation letters. 

FAA legal interpretations are additional explanations and interpretations of federal aviation regulations (FARs/14 CFRs) where the phrasing is ambiguous, or the application to a particular situation is unclear. These interpretation letters are another tool that pilots ought to tap into, to up their competency, especially if their operations might cause them to run into a bind. Plus, outside of the training environment, you’ll rarely come across enough different scenarios that will cause you to clarify ahead of time whether something is allowed.

So, an excellent way to improve your knowledge and to stay on top of aviation regulations is to read these letters that the FAA makes public once it issues a response to a pilot.

How to Get Clarification

Before you break out the pen and paper, you might first reach out to your local FSDO by phone or email. They might be able to clear up any questions you have, particularly if the scenario is something familiar or pertinent to other pilots in your region.

More officially, you can write a letter to the FAA’s Chief Counsel Office in Washington, D.C., to request an interpretation of a specific regulation. Aim to be precise but objective in the details. Be sure to include any supporting material that might help provide context, especially if there is a chance the procedure in question received attention from the FAA separately through a warning letter.

Suppose it turns out that there’s a nuance in the FARs that could cause other pilots to be confused. In that case, the FAA will produce a legal interpretation response letter that references the original scenario and explains the FAR in question in detail, in the way it would prefer the rest of the pilot community to also follow. Considering that these responses set a precedent for doing things, they serve as the final word on how to follow a specific regulation. They might even override a decision from a local FSDO.

It’s excellent that pilots have these additional channels of inquiry to clarify burning questions. Still, before you start making trips to the post office, there’s a lot of homework you should do first to ensure you’ve exhausted all other options. Ask yourself, have I considered:

• Other relevant regulations
• Relevant FAA guidance (i.e., ACs, orders)
• Previous perspectives on the issue (FSDO or local ATC facilities)
• Applicable legal interpretations or decisions (precedents)

You can find previous letters by visiting the FAA regulatory division website, where you can search the database by year or keyword. Some notes have gained the status of classics in the pilot community. In a future column, I’ll outline four that have caused widespread discussion and offer some tips on applying them to your operation. 

In your search, you’ll see that they take different forms, but an essential lesson for pilots is that there can be gaps in the systems. What that means is you need to do your best to get your knowledge to a level where you can recognize out-of-the-ordinary patterns and situations that might compromise your safety or certificate and be preemptive. Otherwise, you might want to write a letter, if you’re not sure. 

I’m curious, is there any regulation you think seems unclear and should be clarified? Drop me a line at michael@flying.media and let’s discuss. 

The post Question About a Regulation? The FAA May Have Already Cleared it Up appeared first on FLYING Magazine.

The 180-acre airport operated by Santa Clara County is located in east San Jose. In August 2021, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors discussed the findings published in an airborne lead study report that they say demonstrated dangerously high blood lead levels (BLL) in local children.

There is some dispute as to whether or not the study took into account the other sources of lead in the airport environs, including exposure to lead-based paint and pipes that are common in the industrial buildings and homes that make up the area. 

Most of the homes and commercial structures around the airport were built between 1930 and 1970, before lead was recognized as a health hazard. The lead contamination from these entities has been tracked for decades.

“This is not a health issue,” said Walt Gyger, the owner of Trade Winds Aviation, a busy flight school at Reid-Hillview. “This is politicians overreaching, politicians trying to score points with their constituents by saying, ‘We are protecting you.’ They have used this study to fabricate a health crisis to try to trick the FAA into agreeing to close the airport.”

Gyger said that last summer Trade Winds Aviation and AeroDynamic Aviation, the other flight school on the field, replaced the 100LL with unleaded Swift94UL avgas. Swift94UL avgas is a drop-in replacement for 100LL that does not require engine modification and a supplemental type certificate for many aircraft engines currently. Pilots of aircraft that cannot use 94UL will have to get their fuel away from Reid-Hillview.

“We were hoping the county would see fit to a hybrid approach where both 94UL and 100LL are available at the airport,” Gyger said. He added that the fuel ban isn’t the only issue tenants are having with the county. Businesses that are trying to renew their leases are running into roadblocks.

“Businesses are only being offered month-to-month agreements,” he explained. “The county is making the airport undesirable.”

For business owners, month-to-month leases are often not economical, because when the owner makes improvements to their space, it can take years to recoup the cost of investment. 

How We Got Here

An effort to close the airport is being led by Supervisor Cindy Chavez, who represents District 2, encompassing the area surrounding the airport. Chavez, like her predecessors, has been pushing for airport closure since the 1990s, allegedly to eliminate lead exposure.

Chavez’s information page on the county website says: “In partnership with the Eastside and allied communities, and in solidarity with those who led previous efforts… Cindy Chavez led the Board of Supervisors to a unanimous decision to take such actions as may be necessary to expeditiously eliminate lead exposure from operations at Reid-Hillview Airport in East San Jose, consistent with all established federal, state, and local laws and all court orders. Such actions may include, but are not limited to, both prohibiting the sale or use of leaded fuel, and pursuing any and all available paths to early closure prior to 2031.”

That year is when the FAA grant assurances will expire, and the county will no longer be obligated to keep the airport open.

Chavez did not immediately return a request for comment from FLYING.

National Attention

The decision by the Board of Supervisors to ban 100LL has gained the attention of big-name aviation advocacy groups such as the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the Experimental Aircraft Association, National Business Aviation Association, General Aviation Manufacturers Association, National Air Transportation Association, and Helicopter Association International.

• READ MORE: Reid-Hillview Airport Battles Misconceptions

In a letter to FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson, the organizations called on the FAA to use its “aviation safety mandate to prohibit individual airports from interrupting the availability of 100LL and stifling the cooperative industry-government effort to safely transition the entire general aviation fleet to unleaded fuels. It is vital to public safety to mitigate [misfueling] risks for pilots and passengers, and for the people and property on the ground during this transition.”

AOPA notes that there are some aircraft that cannot safely use unleaded fuel and if an aircraft is misfueled, it could lead to engine failure and an accident.

However, Harry Freitas, director of roads and airports for Santa Clara County, said the ban on 100LL at Reid-Hillview going into effect on January 1, 2022, can’t be stopped. 

“It’s a done deal,” Freitas said, adding that “the county’s two 100LL tanks will be refilled with UL94. There is no need to convert the tanks.” 

Freitas also said the FBOs are already offering 94UL for aircraft that have been modified to accept 94UL and have the required supplemental type certificate. 

Freitas added that the fuel supplier determines the cost of the fuel, saying that if it is more than 100LL, “it shouldn’t be more than 50 cents or a dollar more per gallon.” 

Freitas could not verify that the fuel change is a move by the county board of supervisors to close the airport but did say that closure of the airport was one of the ways identified to lessen lead exposure in the area. “They have asked us to implement lead-free operations at the airport, including petitioning for early closure if that’s what is necessary, but if not, that leaves another nine years of federal obligation.”

Historically, when an airport is under obligation, the FAA is reluctant to close the facility, as it serves as part of the nation’s critical aviation infrastructure.

Reid-Hillview History

Reid-Hillview opened in 1939 with a single dirt runway. During World War II, flying was moved 50 miles inland and airports were either closed or turned into military fields. Reid-Hillview closed with the understanding that it would reopen at the end of the war.

Today, the airport has two parallel runways: 13L/31R, measuring 3,101 ft by 75 ft, and 13R/31L, measuring 3,009 ft by 75 ft. In all, 124 aircraft are based at Reid-Hillview and the airport sees approximately 573 operations a day, of which about 40 percent are transient operations.

Reid-Hillview is a reliever for San Jose International Airport (KSJA), which is owned by the city of San Jose.

In 1989, when the Loma Prieta Earthquake made ground transportation impossible to the coast, Reid-Hillview was used to get supplies to heavily damaged Watsonville and Santa Cruz.

The post Aviation Community Livid With Santa Clara County Over Looming 100LL Ban appeared first on FLYING Magazine.