A high-profile UK player in the eVTOL market is Vertical Aerospace. The Bristol-based company was founded in 2016 by businessman Stephen Fitzpatrick, who also created OVO Energy.
Its striking design, the VX4 uses eight large propellers mounted on thin aircraft-style wings to generate lift. Mr Fitzpatrick made ambitious claims about the plane, suggesting it would be “100 times” safer and quieter than a helicopter at 20% the cost.
The company has made progress. After completing a remote-controlled testing program, it began pilot testing earlier this year. Initially, they were conducted with the aircraft tethered to the ground. In early November, he made the first untethered takeoff and landing.
But there were also serious failures. Last August, a remote-controlled prototype was badly damaged when it crashed during a test at Cotswold Airport after a propeller blade fell off.
In May, one of its key partners, the engineering giant Rolls Royce got out of the deal, external to supply electric motors for the aircraft.
Ambitions remain sky-high. Vertical Aerospace says it will deliver 150 aircraft to customers by the end of the decade. By then, he also expects to be able to produce 200 units a year and break even in monetary terms.
But the company faced financial problems and recently agreed, external rescue deal with its largest creditor, the American company Mudrick Capital.
Under the agreement, Mudrick will invest up to $50 million in Verticial, while $130 million of Mudrick’s loan will be converted into equity.
This will leave the US investment company with a 70% stake in Vertical, while Mr Fitzpatrick’s stake will drop from 70% to 20%.
“This comprehensive deal – together with the recent pilot flight campaign … means that Vertical is positioned as a winner in one of the most exciting technologies of the 21st century,” Mr Fitzpatrick said in a statement accompanying the deal.
