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business line than the aircraft. In
                                                                                the 5–10-year period, both busi-
                                                                                ness lines will progress at the same
                                                                                pace. We can have the aircraft
                                                                                rolled out in 2027. We are develop-
                                                                                ing the propulsion system now and
                                                                                it will be on our aircraft in 2027.

                                                                                The Better Option?
                                                                                A hybrid-electric propulsion system
                                                                                has many advantages over purely
                                                                                electric flight, says Baldivia. “In
                                                                                terms of performance, there is
                                                                                no comparison. For customers, it
                                                                                is also about productivity. Unlike
                                                                                an eVTOL, we do not need to
                                                                                recharge aircraft on the ground for
                                                                                an hour. On a one-hundred-mile
                                                                                trip, eVTOLs can do seven rota-
                                                                                tions a day; we can do more than
                                                                                12. The propulsion system takes us
                                                                                to places our competition cannot
                                                                                go, such as longer distances and
                                                                                remote areas.”

                                                                                The company, which has tested
                                                                                seven prototypes, will start flight
        Lambert, Ascendance Chief           be used with Sterna today,” says    tests of the Atea with a pilot on
        Executive Officer. “Sterna is scal-  Lambert. “The first objective is to   board, this year. Certification is
        able in terms of size; if the drone   reduce energy consumption. In the   first expected from the European
        is smaller, we can downscale it.    future, we want to be able to switch   Union Aviation Safety Agency
        We can also have the technology     to hydrogen (burned or in fuel cells).   (EASA). “When it came to regula-
        on bigger aircraft that are used for   The idea is to be technology-ready   tions, there were two very different
        regional aviation. We believe that   not just for today but for the future   staring points for EASA and FAA,”
        the certification of the propulsion   as well.”                         says Baldivia. “EASA had a clear
        system can happen earlier than                                          set of rules while FAA adopted a
        Atea; it depends on which aircraft   “We have made a lot of progress in   case-by-case approach. There is
        it is installed on.  Downscaled, it   the last five years,” says Thibault   convergence happening now. It is
        can happen much earlier. We are     Baldivia, Chief Commercial Officer.   easier for us to get Atea certified
        focused on both Atea and Sterna;    “Our vision is to make an impact on   in Europe because we know the
        they are dependent on each other.”  aviation, to decarbonize aviation.   rules of the game. But the market
                                            It is a two-fold plan. We are work-  will be larger in the United States
        The company is targeting the heli-  ing on both Atea and Sterna at the   and Southeast Aasia. I think the first
        copter market with Atea. Compared   same time. Atea is ideal for regional   deployments will be in the U.S. or in
        to traditional helicopters, the     air mobility (RAM). With Sterna, we   Southeast Asia.
        hybrid-eVTOL can reduce carbon      are developing a propulsion system
        emissions by up to 80%. It is also a   for aircraft that has a capacity of   Lambert expects hybrid electric pro-
        lot quieter than helicopters. As the   more than 10 passengers. The     pulsion systems to be more popular
        letters of intent (LOI) for the aircraft   system can also be used on 6–10-  than electric propulsion systems in
        pile up, the company is involved    seater range aircraft.”             the long run. “We are starting to see
        in discussions with aircraft OEMs                                       it now,” he says. “When we founded
        about the potential use of Sterna.  Baldivia expects both products      the company, 99 per cent of the
                                            to do well in the market. “Ten to   projects were fully electric. But the
        “Both conventional jet fuel and     twenty years from now, I think the   industry is moving toward hybrid
        sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) can   propulsion system will be a bigger   electric propulsion systems now.”.

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