By Chris Stonor
Tokyo-based aero tech start-up, SkyDrive, unveiled this week its ultra-light compact eVTOL, Model SD-03, at the Las Vegas CES 2022, reports asdnews.com. Not only has SD-03 successfully completed various trials for piloted flight, but this is the first time the craft had been showcased in another country other than Japan.
SkyDrive’s electric-powered flying vehicle is designed to vertically take off and land enabling fast door-to-door transportation anywhere, including uses for emergency rescue.
Meanwhile, a more advanced Model SD-05 is under development which could become an air taxi for World Expo 2025 in Osaka. SkyDrive recently gained the Japanese Transportation Ministry’s acceptance of its type certificate application for this craft, a major milestone that no other eVTOL company has achieved in Japan.
SkyDrive COO, Takehiro Sato, commented, “The SD-03 model is the culmination of our expertise in drone technologies and aerodynamic engineering. What we want to see in the future is that SkyDrive’s emission-free vehicles take off from and land in your parking lot and helipads atop buildings, making door-to-door air travel a realistic choice of daily urban transportation.” Adding, “We are working harder and faster than ever to make this once-in-a-century mobility revolution a reality.”
The Las Vegas-based CES 2022 (January 5th-7th) is a three-day “futurist event” which began on Wednesday and ends today (Friday). Over 2,200 companies are exhibiting, representing industries from digital health, food tech and gaming to drones and eVTOLs.
(News Source: https://www.asdnews.com/)
