Wed, Jan 19, 2022
German Sport Seaplane to Serve as LSA and Base for Amphibious eVTOL
Dornier Seawings has purchased the Flywhale seaplane program from its German parent, Uniplanes GmbH, in a package that includes all intellectual property, production assets, design data, drawings, manuals, tooling, and molds. The acquisition positions the Flywhale FW650 as a future Dornier product in line with the company's Seawings and Seastar CD2 aircraft as the DS-2C. Dornier says an eVTOL, jet-powered version is also in early development to enter the air mobility market.
The Flywhale has been in the works since 2013 as a 2-abreast amphibious sport aircraft. The small, lightweight flying boat's design includes just enough berthing space within for two people to sleep in the fuselage, should they choose to camp out on the water. The Flywhale is powered by a lightweight, top mounted Rotax 912 iS, with newer updates and modifications on the way under Dornier stewardship. The company says the DS-2C will also act as the base of a research platform to enter the advanced air mobility segment as the DS-2C-X-eVTOL. As Dornier digests the program, future updates will be released as the company follows on their "unlimited runways" approach, boasting access to seaside cities lacking sufficient landing space on land.
"The Flywhale fits very well into our product portfolio given its flying boat configuration and proven design features such as corrosion-free composites, high wings and engine as well as sponsons,” said Amy Pan, CEO of Dornier Seawings. “Our mission is to revive the Dornier flying boat tradition with advanced technology to provide our customers with the unique experience of superior mobility that combines water, land and air operation. We are convinced that the Flywhale, as the first scion of the Seastar family, will not only contribute to value creation, but also unleash its potential as an unlimited platform for smart technological innovation in the AAM segment.”
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