Nexus eVTOL’s First Flight No Longer Expected in 2025

Textron eAviation is putting the development of its Nexus electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft on hold, meaning its first flight is no longer part of the 2025 agenda. The manufacturer claims that its current aircraft lineup takes priority over the Wichita-based eVTOL project.

The Nexus, a four-passenger, single-pilot design designed to serve short urban routes, was slated for tethered flight testing this year. Instead, Textron has pulled and redistributed staff to other efforts, including the Pipistrel Panthera piston program, the hybrid-electric Nuuva V300 drone, and flight-control work at Textron eAviation in Germany.

The pause is an unfortunate turn for Wichita, which Textron itself once labeled a next-gen aviation hub. Local leaders and engineers had looked to Textron’s electric projects as a way to keep the “Air Capital” relevant in a changing market. Now, with workforce expansion and supplier contracts tied to Nexus development looking unstable, city officials and smaller aerospace firms are forced to reassess their place in the electric aviation supply chain.

Textron’s choice follows a trend of headwinds across the electric aviation sector. While its Pipistrel Velis Electro remains the only certified all-electric aircraft in production, scaling it to a bigger, passenger-ready eVTOL has proven more complicated. Battery limitations and certification hurdles continue to delay the timeline, not helping investor confidence across the industry… especially with companies like Universal Hydrogen and Lilium facing repeated fallouts.

Luckily, market analysts still predict urban air mobility could grow into a multibillion-dollar sector by the 2030s. In the meantime, Textron is leveraging its nearer-term aircraft programs with clearer certification paths to keep afloat, leaving the Nexus eVTOL parked and waiting.

FMI: https://e-aviation.com