Airbus Helicopters halts CityAirbus eVTOL programme amid tech hurdles
January 28, 2025
Airbus Helicopters announced plans to “pause” its CityAirbus NextGen electric Vertical Take-off and landing (eVTOL) programme following the conclusion of its flight testing phase later this year. The decision was confirmed by CEO Bruno Even during a briefing on Monday.
The CityAirbus NextGen programme launched four years ago with Airbus Helicopters’ flagship venture in advanced air moblity (AAM) aiming to deliver an all-electric eVTOL capable of carrying three passengers and one pilot. Designed to cruise at around 120km/h over distances of 80km, the vehicle was originally slated for commercial operations by the end of the decade.
Despite achieving a milestone with the first uncrewed flight of its demonstrator in 2024 at Airbus’ facility in Donauworth, Germany, Even cited technological and regulatory hurdles as the primary reasons for pausing the programme.
The battery barrier
“The conditions to launch a new programme are not necessarily there,” said Even, as he pointed to the need for further advancements in battery technology and regulatory frameworks. “We think the technology that we imagined does not exist yet to launch a product,” he explained. Underlining that the manufacture remains committed to innovation, he added, “we have learned a lot from the project and will continue to explore with CityAirbus NextGen but once the work of the present programme is finished we will pause the programme.”
Work on Airbus’ other three research initiatives including the DemonstratorLab, PioneerLab and DisruptiveLab will continue as planned. Although no firm date was specified, the pause on CityAirbus is expected to start before the end of this year and remain in place for the forseeable future.
Is the eVTOL bubble bursting?
The announcement also follows strong sales of conventional helicopters during 2024 and reflects the broader challenges facing Europe’s AAM sector as companies navigate regulatory and market readiness obstacles as well as funding hurdles to bring AAM solutions to life. German air taxi manufacturer Volocopter recently filed for bankruptcy, while Lilium has also faced its fair share of financial woes in recent months, although a new owner Mobile Uplift Corporation (MUC) expects to take over the company’s assets by the end of January 2025.
