BETTER PARTSLilium Jet: Does the air taxi?
Gilching, 21 April 2017
Allegedly, flying cars will be just before the start of production. A long dream of all car drivers could be true: to fly over all the traffic jams. But it isn't quite that simple unfortunately. The floating cars are hugely expensive, require an additional flight license and also around 200 metres space forward, to start. On this sticking point, the company deploys Lilium, the graduates of Technical University of Munich in the year 2015 have founded. There they developed a whiz with electric drive.
No runway necessary
(The prototype of the "Lilium Jet" tested for the first time in the air is reminiscent of the "Fliewatüüt" from the children's programme, but a) no helicopters and b) very seriously. Still it's a two-seater, which has dealt with the most important task: the transition from vertical start to horizontal flight. Therefore one speaks also of VTOL (vertical take-off and landing). Estimate of production of a seater jets, which can be requested or provides also flight communities at any time as air taxi via Smartphone. For takeoff and landing, it is necessary to only a small area in or on a building.
Much faster than a car
Objectives would be achieved with up to 300 km/h five times faster than the car. As an example, Lilium is called the distance from Manhattan to JFK Airport: 55 minutes by car, only five minutes by air taxi. How does the Lilium Jet? Officially, he is regarded as light aircraft, which is powered by 36 electric turbines. Each, three of them hide in the movable flaps on the wings. 12 turbines are front responsible for the shorter wing, 24 for the longer wing behind the passenger cabin. At startup, the flaps facing down, it goes straight up. Once there, moving the flaps in a horizontal position and it goes forward in the classic aircraft-style.
All secured
Around 300 kilometers of Lilium Jet to come, which is not a problem in the urban environment. The power consumption per kilometre should move to the level of an electric car. By means of the principle of "ultra redundancy" Lilium wants to go play it safe: each engine is securely wrapped, so the loss of adjacent units has a domino effect. The batteries of the jets are designed so that a reserve there always is, to safely land if parts fall off. Finally, a system specially developed to prevent that the pilot flies daredevil maneuvers, which extend beyond the capability of the jets. It will be so excited if we are soon transported through the air. Because there are strict regulations. (rh)