Lilium Jet five-seat air taxi made a successful test flight
German startup Lilium, which introduced a two-seater air taxi in 2017, has improved its design and presented a working model of an air taxi for five passengers. After numerous tests on the ground, the prototype successfully proved itself in the air. The device is equipped with 36 jet engines and can accelerate up to 300 kilometers per hour. The project team claims that such a task can fly from London to Paris in just an hour. The electrical energy on which a taxi plane fully functions makes it an environmentally friendly mode of transport. In addition, Lilium Jet helps to partially get rid of ground congestion. On the wings of the air taxi there are 24 jet engines, the rest are located in the front of the hull. By changing the orientation, the engines provide both horizontal and vertical movement in the air.
According to the developers, during flight at a constant speed, the device uses only 1/10 of the power of all engines. On a single charge, a flying taxi can fly up to 300 kilometers at a maximum speed of 300 km / h. A five-minute flight on the Lilium Jet replaces an hour or so by car. In early May, the first test flight of Lilium Jet took place. The test took place in the vicinity of Munich. And, although the flight took place without the participation of pilots and even more so passengers, the company considers it successful. In the future, the Lilium Jet air taxi will be used to connect railway stations and airports, as well as connect the central districts with the suburbs. According to some forecasts, many world cities will start using the Lilium project and operate by air closer to 2025.
Lilium has several competitors in the world that are also designing an air taxi and working to develop a similar service. Thus, Airbus demonstrated the flight of its model even earlier. The company's working prototype, Vahana air taxi, made its first test flight at the beginning of this year. At an altitude of 64 meters, the device reached a speed of 57 km / h. The Topic of Article: Lilium Jet five-seat air taxi made a successful test flight. |
