A U.S. startup Alaka’i Technologies has unveiled Skai, a hydrogen-powered air taxi. The company has already built its first full-scale prototype and expects to receive Federal Aviation Administration certification before the end of 2020.

Most modern air taxies are designed as electric vehicles with battery-powered engines and onboard equipment. Such air taxies are deemed to be environmentally friendly, but they have relatively short flight endurance on batteries charged to the fullest extent.

Some developers have come up with hybrid designs of air taxies to improve flight endurance. In this case, small internal combustion engines connected with generators are installed onboard of such aircraft. During the flight the latter will power electric motors and charge batteries.

According to engineers from Alaka’i Technologies, hydrogen fuel cells can generate enough aerostatic force for quite an extensive flight time. According to the project data, Skai is able to take off and land vertically.

The technology will reportedly allow Skai to fly for up to four hours and cover 400 miles (644 km) on a single load of fuel. The fuel can be replenished just in 10 minutes at a hydrogen fueling station. If additional fuel tanks are used, the flight time can be extended up to ten hours. The air taxi will be able to fly at a speed of 118 mph (190 km/h).

Skai has the six-motor design and can carry up to five passengers with autonomous control and four passengers with an onboard pilot. The maximum payload is 1,000 lbs (454 kg). An airframe parachute ensures that the Skai doesn’t simply drop out of the air in the case of a failure of its propeller or hydrogen cell system.

So far, it is unknown when it is planned to start first test flights of Skai air taxi.

Meanwhile, in the mid-May of this year, Airbus completed the first test flight of its CityAirbus air taxi. The first flight was unmanned with the CityAirbus taxi tethered to the ground. The project is aimed at designing a quadcopter-like aircraft, capable of carrying from two to four passengers to a distance of up to 60 kilometers.

Source: Nplus1

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