Worlds of aviation and air travel are under increased pressure from governments and customers to reduce their impact on the environment. As most industries are focusing on reducing their emissions on their journey to net zero, aviation is projected to increase its associated CO2 emissions over the next decade. This is primarily driven by an increased global demand for flights, especially domestic and regional flights. According to recent studies by McKinsey and Porsche Consulting, by 2050 there are going to be over 300 million passengers in Europe alone traveling on flights shorter than 500km. More than double compared to 2019 figures.

At Flux Aviation we are developing key technologies that will enable zero emission regional air mobility. We believe in the future of aviation that utilises smaller and more agile 10-40 seat fully electric aircraft, flying regional routes up to 500km. In the United States, for example, 90 percent of the population lives within a 30-minute drive of a regional airport. Thanks to reducing operating costs of small electric aircraft, we will be able to connect remote communities that are not served well today and dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions on existing popular routes.

However, current electric vehicle technologies are not sufficient to power these next-generation regional aircraft. The two main limiting factors are the performance and safety. For aviation applications the electric motors and batteries have to be incredibly light-weight and capable of delivering high levels of power continuously. Aviation industry is synonymous with safety and any future electric powertrains will have to meet levels of safety far beyond what currently exists in the automotive sector.

To address these challenges and unlock the potential of electric flight, Flux Aviation has started development of bespoke powertrain components designed from the ground-up to meet aviation standards. We have developed a design for next-generation battery modules that include several layers of safety and redundancy in a package that is light-weight and deliver high levels of performance. This project specifically focuses on the manufacturing and testing of prototype battery modules in order to demonstrate their real-world performance and safety.

Successfully completing this project will allow us to attract further commercial interest and build new partnerships. It will also help us raise private investment by de-risking the process for future investors. We will then scale our battery technology into low-volume production and start pursuing formal regulatory certification.