Supernal LLC – Hyundai Motor Group’s Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) company – today announced its return to the biennial Farnborough International Airshow, where the company will showcase its fully electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicle product concept, the S-A2, and share progress toward commercial flight in 2028. The event marks the introduction of the S-A2 to the aviation community and is the latest milestone in Supernal’s journey to make safe and efficient everyday passenger air travel a reality.
The S-A2, which made its official debut in January, will be unveiled to the public at Supernal’s air show chalet (A025). The aircraft is uniquely designed to help people in urban areas get to their destinations faster, leveraging the expertise of Supernal’s aerospace engineering team in collaboration with Hyundai Motor Group’s automotive design and manufacturing teams. The S-A2 will cruise at 120 mph and have an initial range of 60 miles, meeting typical urban operational requirements. The aircraft will utilize a distributed electric propulsion architecture and will operate quietly to meet local noise standards. Most importantly, the S-A2 has been designed to meet global commercial aviation safety standards with a robust airframe structure that includes redundant components for critical systems such as the powertrain, flight control, and avionics.
“We are excited to share Supernal’s latest product milestone, the eVTOL product concept, with the aviation industry as we begin commercial advanced air mobility operations in 2028,” said Jaewon Shin, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Group and Supernal. “Based on our philosophy of ‘right product, right market, right time,’ the S-A2 embodies the important work Supernal is doing together with fleet operators, suppliers, governments and Hyundai Motor Group to ensure AAM will be a safe, economically viable and pervasive mode of transportation for decades to come.”
Supernal plans to begin prototype testing of the S-A2 in 2025, before the company begins flying its full-scale technology demonstrator (FSTD). The FSTD test program will help Supernal mature and validate vehicle systems on its prototype vehicle, build flight test capabilities, and establish a robust supply chain. The company announced today that GKN has successfully delivered the full composite wing assembly for the FSTD and expects to deliver the boom by the end of this month.
“2024 is a pivotal year in Supernal’s eVTOL development, marking the transition from engineering design to build and execution,” said David McBride, Supernal’s chief technology officer. “In addition to learning important lessons from our full-scale technology demonstration, we will begin prototype development and continue to refine our production vehicle for scale-up manufacturing in the coming months.”
To integrate AAM into existing transportation modes, Supernal continues to convene key stakeholders to responsibly co-create the industry ecosystem. Supernal will host an industry panel in partnership with the World Economic Forum on Wednesday, July 24 at 10 a.m. at the airshow. Shin and leaders from Honeywell and Kearney will share their perspectives on how to address AAM adoption challenges, including regulatory gaps, the need for new infrastructure, and securing public acceptance. Supernal will also advance and present its efforts related to AAM market development at the airshow.
“We recognize that eVTOL vehicles are only one piece of the AAM puzzle,” said Shin. “Building the entire ground-to-air-to-ground ecosystem requires thoughtful collaboration between leaders across all aspects of the industry, and the Farnborough International Airshow provides the right platform for that.”
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