13 June 2017
A hybrid-powered ‘helicopter as a car’ will be unveiled at this month’s Paris Air Show (from 19-25 June). It’s called the SureFly and can carry two people.
The helicopter is being developed by a US company called Workhorse, which has several electric vehicle projects on the go.
Workhorse says the SureFly is a personal helicopter/VTOL aircraft designed for safe and easy flight. It has eight independent motors each driving a single carbon fibre propeller, a back-up battery power system, and a ballistic parachute to land safely in the event of emergency.
Workhorse hybrid power SureFly helciopter to be unveiled at the Paris Air Show later this month.
“With our tech expertise developing carbon fibre drones and electric battery powered vehicles, we now showcase our two person, eight rotor helicopter,” said the company.
“This hybrid aircraft is designed for a short hop application with an estimated 70 mile range. In addition the SureFly packs an on-board fully redundant back-up battery system. The four carbon fibre arms fold down providing a small footprint to store inside a standard garage.”
The hybrid power system uses a petrol driven engine to drive two generators, which supply electricity to the eight electric motors. They also charge two 7.5kWh Lithium battery packs as a back-up giving five minutes flight. A tank of fuel gives one-hour of flight time. Top speed is 70mph, max height is 4,000ft.
1 comment
will you be making the aircraft available in a kit so homebuilders can construct it and fly it in the US