ANN’s Rex Alexander spoke with Thomson Meeks of Beta Technologies at the recent EAA AirVenture Air Show and Fly-in in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, who gave the rundown on the company’s all-electric Alia CX300 aircraft.
The CX300 is a conventional takeoff and landing, or CTOL aircraft, which gives the company the ability to leverage conventional infrastructure to test the electric aircraft’s design prior to integrating the vertical lift technology for Beta’s VTOL version.
The conventional aircraft has a range of about 215 nm and can carry 5 passengers and a pilot, or transport cargo with the seats removed.
Beta is doing a lot more than some other electric aircraft companies, and Meeks said that they are building out a nationwide network of charging infrastructure at airports. Sixty-four sites are in place currently with some of those under construction.
Meeks said they knew they would have to build not just an electric aircraft, but also an industry, meaning the charging infrastructure, maintenance, and aftermarket support for the airplanes. He remarked that it’s really a whole ecosystem that needs to be built out not just for Beta but also for customers so that the aircraft can be deployed successfully.
One of Beta’s aircraft was featured in the air show, flown by Chris Caputo, one of Beta’s test pilots. He flew the cargo version in the air show and that aircraft was also on display in Boeing Plaza. The passenger version is the one with Meeks on display at the company’s booth.
The CTOL version is going through Part 23 certification, and once that is completed, the company will pursue Powered Lift certification for the VTOL version. Lessons learned from the first certification will speed up the process the second time around.
The two aircraft versions share about 80% design similarity, with the VTOL version having extended forward booms to accommodate the lift motors, and two additional vertical lift motors would be mounted on the two aft ends of the booms.
Beta is training all its pilots internally on both versions, and it is also putting all its employees through flight training as well. The company believes that pilots build good airplanes, and they want everyone including accountants and engineers to know how the airplanes work and fly.
In terms of demand, the company is currently focused on cargo and logistics operations for companies like UPS and United Therapeutics who have expressed interest in Beta’s cargo version to fill their network needs.
Meeks also mentioned Beta’s partnership with Hartzell and their joint announcement about the certification of the first propeller for an electric aircraft.
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