Volkswagen has presented a vertical take-off and landing passenger drone. It is intended to transport four people electrically over a distance of 200 km.
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Volkswagen Group China presents prototype of passenger drone V.MO.
©Volkswagen
Volkswagen did not present its first drone, which is actually intended to transport people, in Germany, but in the People’s Republic of China. Because Volkswagen Group China is responsible for the “V.MO” drone.
Nicknamed the “Flying Tiger,” the V.MO is VW’s first prototype passenger drone to fall under the eVTOL category, VW says. eVTOL stands for “electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft” and therefore refers to electrically powered aircraft that can take off and land vertically.
Technical specifications
The V.MO is 11.2 meters long and has a wingspan of 10.6 meters, as explained by the Wolfsburg car manufacturer. Eight rotors provide lift and two rotors provide propulsion. VW wants to carry out some flight tests in 2022. An improved prototype is scheduled to complete further test flights by late summer 2023. VW plans to get such a drone ready for series production in the long term. However, VW did not name a specific date, and there is also silence about the costs/prices.
For four passengers and luggage
In its final version, V.MO could transport four passengers plus luggage over a distance of up to 200 km, as VW further explains. The target market for the aircraft is the People’s Republic of China.
According to the Wolfsburg-based company, urban air mobility could become an important market segment in China. With the “Vertical Mobility” project of the Volkswagen Group China, the group wants to develop a new premium mobility concept that is initially aimed at wealthy, technology-savvy customers in China. Such drones could serve as VIP shuttles in the megacities of Asia.