ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – Indonesia continues to innovate in creating anti-congestion future transportation, one of which is air taxis.
The air taxi project called Vela Alpha is being carried out by PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) in collaboration with the company, Vela Aero. Vela Alpha is targeted to be operational in 2028.
This miniature Vela Alpha was officially introduced by PTDI at the Singapore Airshow 2024 which took place at the Changi Exhibition Center, 20 February 2014.
PTDI’s Head of Public Relations, Anissa Carolina, said that in this collaboration, her party contributed to the man hour aspect for engineering and production activities.
“In the future, PTDI and Vela Aero will copartnering for the production of air taxis and their further development. Manufacturing is most likely at PTDI facilities,” said Annisa in a statement quoted from the PTDI website, Monday, February 26 2024.
He said that the pre-certification application process with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Indonesian Ministry of Transportation has now been carried out. PTDI has submitted a flightworthiness test to the Directorate of Airworthiness and Aircraft Operations, Indonesian Ministry of Transportation
Meanwhile, Vela Aero is a startup company that has been operating since 2020. This company, which is headquartered in Bandung, West Java, has a vision to become a pioneer in providing advanced air mobility solutions in Indonesia.
Based on information on the company website, Vela Aero consists of a combination of aerospace disciplines. The experts at the company focus on realizing the technological mode of air transportation of the future.
It is recorded that there are more than 40 engineers who are members of Vela Aero. Some of the team members at the company are Rejeki S as head of technology, Suharyadi P as head of airworthiness, Donny P as program manager, and R Durmanto as head of government affairs.
Ilham P as chief engineer, Heru Y as systems engineering lead, Bambang S as electrical propulsion lead, and Indra P as structure lead.
Vela Aero has also collaborated with a number of large companies, such as PT Garuda Indonesia Tbk, Toyota, Airbus, Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation, Rolls Royce, Bombardier Aerospace, and PT Len Industri (Persero).
The company is currently focusing on making the Vela Alpha flying taxi. In the introductory video shown on the Vela Aero YouTube channel, the taxi is shaped like a helicopter, but smaller in size.
Regarding specifications and performance, the Vela Alpha has a length of 10.8 meters, a wingspan of 13.1 meters and a height of 4.2 meters. The plane was crewed by one pilot with four passengers and a maximum payload of 456 kilograms (kg).
This air taxi, which has a maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 2,850 kg, is powered by a full electric propulsion system with a power of 216 kWh or a hybrid powered with a power of 71 kWh. For maximum speed, Vela Alpha reaches 250 km per hour.
Meanwhile, for range, the full electric version (eVTOL) reaches 100 km, and the hybrid version (hVTOL) up to 500 km. (AT Network)
Check out other news and articles at Google News