Aircraft Under Development In The U.K. By 4X4 Aviation

A scale model of the 4X4 Aviation VV VTOL cargo aircraft was flown for the first time at Lydd airport near London on Friday.

The company hopes that in three year's time they will begin producing the aircraft, eventually manufacturing 30 planes per month.

The website Kent Online reports that Thorsten Reihardt, the person who conceived the aircraft, says that it will be designed to carry more than 30 metric tons of material around the world, and operate in areas where there is no or limited aviation infrastructure. A smaller version would be able to carry 10 metric tons, and the company also plans a small, two-seat manned version of the aircraft, according to Kent Online.

4X4 Aviation says on its website that the VV Plane’s electric-gas hybrid design allows it to travel three times the speed at twice the distance of conventional ground transportation. Electric turbines drawing from the onboard generator and energy storage allow for the efficient vertical take off and smooth transition to a horizontal flight. This comes in response to recent publications regarding DARPA’s X-Plane Project in which four key players including Boeing are competing to radically improve vertical take off and cruise flight.

The company says it is now seeking investors for the project.

(Image from 4X4 Aviation Facebook page)

FMI: www.4x4aviation.com