24 October 2016
Airbus has revealed sketchy details of an autonomous single-seat or light cargo aircraft project which it says will fly before the end of next year.
Project Vahana is one of the first ideas from what Airbus calls A3 (‘A-cubed’), its advanced projects and partnerships outpost in Silicon Valley, California.
“At Vahana, we are passionate about personal flight,” said A3 project executive Rodin Lyasoff. “The aircraft we’re building doesn’t need a runway, is self-piloted, and can automatically detect and avoid obstacles and other aircraft.
“Designed to carry a single passenger or cargo, we’re aiming to make it the first certified passenger aircraft without a pilot. We aim to fly a full-size prototype before the end of 2017, and to have a productizable demonstrator by 2020.”
