Electric Flying Over Cities: How Volkswagen and Supernal Created an Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Prototype for the Stellantis Air Taxi Network

The last time Hyundai brought an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) prototype to CES, it was 2020, and the South Korean automaker was talking bullishly about adding it to Uber’s forthcoming air taxi network.

There are other companies that see visions of small electric aircraft flying over cities. The air taxis will be produced by Stellantis, which owns Jeep, Chrysler, and Dodge. Boeing and NASA also have investments in the technology.

Supernal came up with the S-A1, a concept car that could whisk up to four passengers in 25 to 40 miles per hour over distances of up to 1,500 feet. The ability for vertical flight is provided by eight tilted rotors. On takeoff, the front four point skyward while the back four face downward. Then, for “normal flight,” they all pivot horizontally.

The Supernal Aircraft Center: Getting a Long-Range Air Transport License from a Low-Energy, High-Speed, Multi-Rotor Aircraft

The company says that its aircraft will emit 65 decibels in takeoff and landing phases and 45 decibels in cruising. By comparison, the average helicopter puts out between 96 and 107db. One of the most common reasons for electric aircraft being used is noise reduction.

Supernal is one of a handful of companies that wants to replace noisy, polluting helicopters and regional aircraft with all-electric, multi-rotor vehicles designed for short hops between nearby airports or quick trips from an urban downtown to a local airport.

But as they slowly plod through endless testing procedures mandated by a lengthy regulatory process, they have since rallied around new nomenclature, like eVTOL, urban air mobility, advanced air mobility, and air taxis.

Supernal will benefit from its ties toHyundai in the production of its aircraft, thanks to the fact that it will be able to depend on the automaker’s mass production capabilities. But the company won’t have any special advantages when it comes to regulatory approval, which promises to be long and difficult.

In order to begin a commercial service in the US, an aviation company needs to get three types of certification, including type certification, production certification, and air carrier certification.

Supernal says it’s putting a lot of focus on batteries, particularly, the ability to upgrade to lighter cells when the technology improves. One of the main challenges with electric flight is the power-to-weight ratio. Heavy batteries require more power to compensate, and even bigger batteries. That’s why Supernal and others are focused on short flights and regional hops.

But Supernal isn’t so daunted by the technological challenges that it can’t picture a cozy interior with fine leather upholstery. The design is clean and minimal, with lighting meant to give the impression of being in a larger space.

WIRED’s First Look at the S-A2 Spherical Dishwasher: The Case for a Low-Power On-Radio Electric Vehicle

While this CES has been a more subdued affair in the on-road electric vehicle space—with Ford, General Motors, Toyota, and Stellantis all not exhibiting at the show—2024 seems to be a year of companies once again trying their darnedest to make flying cars happen.

However, the real boon is the promise from Supernal that, at entry into service, the S-A2 will supposedly operate as quietly as a dishwasher: 65 dB in vertical takeoff and landing phases and 45 dB while cruising horizontally.

The SA-2 design is striking and with reason. Luc Donckerwolke, the president, chief design officer, and chief creative officer of Hyundai Motor Group, gave WIRED a tour of the interior. (The brand hosted WIRED at its media event at CES and paid for a portion of our reporter’s travel expense.) On the tour, Donckerwolke revealed that the placing of the glazing on the fuselage was modeled on specific biological entities: insects.