Where in the World is Beta Alia N314BT?

Dean Sigler Announcements, Electric Aircraft Components, Electric Powerplants, Sky Taxis, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Beta Alia N314BT is now part of Bristow’s fleet at Stavanger Airport in Denmark.  Bristow is self-described as, “the world’s leading provider of helicopter transportation to energy customers, search and rescue (SAR) and aircraft support solutions to government and civil organizations.”  The company serves clients in Africa, the Americas, Australia, and throughout Europe.  In this northern-most location, Beta Alias could deliver personnel, equipment, and supplies to even more remote locales. Initiating the Grand Tour Beta’s Alia arrived by ship at Shannon Airport, Ireland in May 2025, ready for its Grand Tour of Europe.  Beta pilots flew a series of sub-300-mile hops on their way north on what would prove to be a delivery flight.  After delighting the locals with trips brushing the cliffs along the airport site, the pilots prepared for a 153 nautical mile VFR (Visual Flight Rules) jaunt.  This, and each subsequent hop added to the over 100,000 miles Beta craft have accumulated in the last few years. …

Flying Machines in Your Two Car Garage

Dean Sigler Announcements, Electric Powerplants, Sky Taxis, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

A flying machine in your two-car garage was the promise heralded by Popular Science and Popular Mechanics magazines during the 1950s and 1960.  It was the era of Bob Cummings piloting his Aerocar on his popular TV show, and KISN radio watching over traffic with one in Portland, Oregon.  Expectations were high and often disappointed. High costs of establishing a network of two-ton, four-passenger eVTOL (electric Vertical Take Off and Landing) machines dissuaded even Uber from pursuing that goal.  Consider that skyports, vertiports, or whatever they ended up as are enormously expensive, and a network with charging stations and passenger accommodations would be a large investment.  Beyond that, each sky taxi would cost well into the high six figures, something that would require corporate ownership rather than the owner/driver model on which Uber’s land-based operations depend. At least four eVTOLs are now on the market or headed there.  None cost more than a claimed $150,000 base price, a plausible outlay …