More than 700 eVTOL aircraft have been catalogued to date in the VFS World eVTOL Aircraft Directory, with new aircraft added after every unveiling. Check out eVTOL.news for more information on each of the aircraft described here or to subscribe to our newsletter. In an announcement at the ILA Berlin Air Show on June 22, Rolls-Royce revealed a design for a turbogenerator for hybrid-electric applications, namely eVTOL and eSTOL aircraft. The turbogenerator will be scaled to serve a power range of between 500 and 1,200 kW and be capable of either recharging batteries after take-off or providing power directly to propellers, allowing aircraft to switch between electric or sustainable fuel power sources in flight. The company expects to begin initial tests of the turbogenerator this year and hopes to introduce it for service in 2027. The German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action is providing funding for the development of the project. The UK-based eVTOL developer Skyfly unveiled a new kit-built personal eVTOL aircraft known as the Axe. In a launch video published on June 23, Skyfly said that the Axe would retail at $180,000 and would enter production in 2024. The two-passenger Skyfly Axe has canard wings and four propellers - two attached at each end of each of the two wings; the propellers do not tilt. It has eight electric motors and would be capable of flying 100 miles (160 km) on batteries, or up to 200 miles (322 km) with a proposed lightweight rotary generator. The June 23 video included footage of the Axe conducting both vertical and conventional fixed-wing operations. In an accompanying statement, Skyfly said that the Axe is currently undergoing certification with the UK's Light Aircraft Association, which would allow it to be flown in most European countries.
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