In order to transform itself into a provider of sustainable and intelligent mobility, Hyundai has already founded a number of new companies. The youngest daughter is called Supernal. It is intended to bring Hyundai customers into the air in an environmentally friendly way.
With the newly founded subsidiary Supernal Hyundai to turn its 2020 electric aircraft plans into reality. Supernal, with headquarters in the US capital Washington, is aiming for the certification of a first aircraft by the American approval authorities in 2024. In 2028, the first purely electrically powered mini-aircraft are to start commercial flight operations.
Autonomous flight operations?
As with the 2020 on the CES The S-A1 concept presented will be four to five-seat e-planes with vertical take-off technology. In metropolitan areas, these will then be used as air taxis on specified routes. For the 2030s, those responsible at Supernal expect significant growth in the air taxi market through autonomous flight operations. In the early days, the taxis were flown by pilots.
Air taxis should be sustainable and cheap
According to Supernal, the development of electric air taxis is subordinate to four principles. This is intended to meet the highest safety standards in the industry and guarantee low noise emissions during operation. In addition, costs for passengers should be low and the service should be adapted to different local conditions in the interests of sustainable mobility.
Thanks to high-flyer technology, the S-A2020 presented in 1 makes it possible to dispense with large-scale infrastructure facilities such as airports. In addition, it can be operated purely electrically without emissions and in a climate-neutral manner. The concept has 12 rotor blades, eight with two blades each and four with five blades. While the two-wing aircraft are only used for take-off and landing, the rotors with five blades initially only provide support and then take over the propulsion work. At the start, the rotors, which can be used in a variety of ways, are initially aligned vertically, but then they align themselves horizontally when they switch to cruise mode. A maximum of 290 km/h at a cruising altitude of 300 to 600 meters should be possible. The batteries allow a range of up to 100 kilometers