Japanese Contender Picking up Speed in Asia

SkyDrive has continued to expand its foothold in its surrounding markets, this time inking a deal for 50 of its electric VTOL aircraft to Solyu of Korea.

The sale - or, more accurately, a memorandum of understanding - would/could provide Solyu with a new AAM aircraft well-suited to those passengers looking to ride far above the congested, gridlocked streets below. Should the firm go through with the agreed-upon preorder, Solyu will purchase "up to" 50 SkyDrive 3-seater eVTOL aircraft. The aircraft is in the midst of acquiring its Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) certification.

Solyu just might be hedging their bets going for an MoU over a firm sale, given the variables at play with SkyDrive. Currently, it's anyone's oyster to be first to market with a usable, reliable, and sustainable eVTOL boasting all the right buzzwords - if a 3-seater from Japan is the first to do it, then all the better for them, but Solyu seems to be holding off from committing too much just yet. The lessor has stood in the Korean finance industry for years, today increasing their focus on all the hot e-suffix aircraft. Now, it focuses on "providing customers with zero emissions vehicles such as eVTOL, eCTOL, and eSTOL"... distinctions between vertical, conventional, and short takeoff capabilities.

In addition to filling out their hypothetical future fleet, Solyu will "continue to evaluate commercial eVTOL considerations such as vertiports, routes, infrastructure requirements, and ecosystems with the Korean government and other interested stakeholders to launch new mobility solutions in Korea."

FMI: www.en.skydrive2020.com