The German e-volo company has now flown, in unmanned mode, its two seat electric volocopter.
- Successful maiden flight of the world’s first green helicopter – e-volo
- Electric two-seater Volocopter is tested in Germany (w/ Video) – phys.org
The vehicle, inspired by the multi-rotor scale model fliers like the popular RC quadcopters, has 18 independently powered rotors.
The maiden flight and first test flights were conducted in the dm-arena in Karlsruhe with the prototype of the 2-person VC200 on Sunday, November 17, 2013. Based on this model, it will be prepared for series production in the coming years.
With multiple flights lasting several minutes reaching the nearly 22 m high ceiling of the dm-arena, including a number of smooth takeoffs and landings, the Volocopter concept exceeded all expectations. “Rich and incredibly quiet sound, absolutely no noticeable vibrations in the flight, convincing structure with a great, new spring strut landing gear, and an extremely calm rotor plane,“ concluded the e-volo team.
No offense to the e-volo guys, but it is not the most aesthetically pleasing aircraft.
Bob Clark
Really! I think it looks great.