Alauda AirspeederMK4  and  AMSL Speed Toward Records

Dean Sigler Electric Powerplants, hydrogen, Hydrogen Fuel, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Alauda and AMSL – two companies down under – are pressing ahead on divergent missions, but both powering “flying cars” with hydrogen.  Both craft will achieve higher speeds and cover longer ranges than most other electric Vertical Take Off and Landing (eVTOL) craft. Alauda Airspeeder MK4 Alauda’s brief history of creating Airspeeders hits its latest iteration, the MK4.  It replaces batteries with a 1,000 kilowatt hydrogen-fueled turbo generator driving ducted fans in place of previous open rotors.  Up to now, the various Marks were remotely controlled and battery powered.  MK4s will be “crewed” and powered by green hydrogen. Evolved over the last few years, MK4 will be much faster than its 100 kilometer per hour predecessors, and we hope, more controllable.  Remotely controlled  crashes, as shown in this2022 MK3 race, are no more harmful to human operators than a video game – although probably more costly. Looking a great deal like a Formula 1 or Formula e race car, the …

Electric Air Racing News

Dean Sigler Announcements, Batteries, Electric Powerplants, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

Electric Air Racing is a modern take on an age-old idea.  Ever since people tamed horses, the idea of comparing their speeds became important.  Boats, cars, and aircraft followed the same path.  As with horses, the idea that “racing improves the breed” held sway.  Now, one Australian company and a major aeronautical organization hope to make air racing a path to the future. Alauda Aeronautics Matt Pearson founded the Airspeeder  racing program with the credo, “Competition accelerates progress.”  Toward that end, he partnered with Alauda, an Australian firm, to develop a group of high-performance aerial racers.  Looking somewhat like the vehicles flown by Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars films, the “flying cars” certainly evoke a performance image. The team recently flew three Airspeeders via remote control with First Person View (FPV) technology helping ground-based pilots control their craft around a Alauda unabashedly uses the term “flying cars,” as in, “Racing to deliver a revolution in personal air mobility so …