The Royal Aeronautical Society is accepting entries for its fourth design competition aimed at promoting major innovation in the general aviation aircraft sector, this one with a specific eVTOL focus.
Conducted in partnership with the Light Aircraft Association, the competition seeks entries from under- and post-graduate engineering students, professionals, and amateur aircraft designers from anywhere in the world, whether as individuals or teams.
The premise of the competition is that a hurricane has swept across the Caribbean island of Dominica, destroying almost all buildings and blocking most roads. An eVTOL aircraft is needed to evacuate people who have been injured, preferably to islands that are not already overwhelmed with medical cases.
The aircraft must accommodate a pilot, attendant, and stretcher case, and be capable of performing vertical take-offs and descents to and from 50 feet. Among other design constraints, it must have a tilt-wing, tilt-thrust, or tilt-rotor configuration, and an electric powertrain using only batteries for energy storage. It should have general characteristics compliant with the requirements of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s Special Condition for Small-Category VTOL aircraft.
Each entry must include a design report, and a flight model of the design for evaluation in X-Plane or compatible simulators. The deadline for entries is Aug. 31, with winners to be announced at the Royal Aeronautical Society GA Light Aircraft Design Conference on Nov. 16.
To learn more about the competition and to enter, visit the Royal Aeronautical Society website.
I can’t wait till we’re able to get a FREE ride in one of these VTOL’s. So far 97% of all VTOL’s are only pipe dreams and CGI’s in a computer simulator. The VTOL’s I’m personally waiting for are the following 1. The Bartini 2. Terrafugia TF-X 3. Lillium Jet.