British eVTOL developer Vertical Aerospace has conducted the first untethered flight of its VX4 prototype, kicking off Phase Two of its development program.
Until now Vertical Aerospace had conducted piloted flight tests, but with the aircraft always tethered to the ground by a cable.
In July 2024, the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) approved an extension of Vertical Aerospace’s testing activities at its Cotswold Airport (GBA) facilities, located in the southwest of England.
During Phase Two, the VX4 will be testing the takeoff and landing maneuver and conducting low-speed and hovering flights within a restricted area. If all goes well, then the VX4 will move to the next two testing phases it needs to complete before being granted its certification from the CAA.
Phase Three will involve wing-borne flight testing, which involves operating like a fixed-wing aircraft, including takeoff and landing. Phase Four will focus on the transition stage of the flight when the aircraft shifts from vertical to horizontal flight.
However, while Vertical Aerospace is making progress on the technical side, there is still significant uncertainty about the project’s financial side.
With financial markets and venture capitalists getting cold feet regarding the continued capital demands of the eVTOL industry and some eVTOL developers, like Germany’s Lilium, which faces a serious liquidity crisis and even bankruptcy, all eyes are on Vertical Aerospace’s discussions with Mudrick Capital.
This US venture capital firm, which is already an investor in Vertical Aerospace, specializes in special situation investments and is said to be negotiating an increase in its equity stake in return for a $200 million capital injection in the firm.
Vertical Aerospace reported a cash position of £42.8 million ($57.4 million) as of September 30, 2024, and evaluated its capital needs for the next 12 months at around £78.4 million ($98 million). The proposed investment and recapitalization will help to expand the company’s financial runway and bring it closer to the planned certification date for the VX4.
In parallel to announcing the start of its Phase Two testing, Vertical Aerospace also released its “Flightpath 2030” strategy. In this report, the advanced air mobility startup outlined its business development plan for the next few years.
The plan envisages the VX4 gaining certification in 2028 and then re-certifying the first major upgrade towards 2030, which may expand its payload capacity from four to six passengers.
Vertical Aerospace is also gearing up to produce 150 aircraft per year as soon as it starts industrial production. This figure could increase to 200 per year by the end of 2030 and could be scaled up to 700 units per year later.
The company also estimates that it will be able to achieve financial break-even by 2030 and a 40% gross profit margin in the years after that.