Wedoany.com Report on Mar 10th, Japanese electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft manufacturer SkyDrive Inc. announced that it has reached an agreement with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) on the General Certification Plan for the SKYDRIVE model (Model SD-05). This agreement is a crucial step in the type certification process for eVTOL aircraft, marking significant progress in the certification efforts.
The General Certification Plan outlines the overall activities required to demonstrate the aircraft's compliance with legal requirements, including the collaborative process between JCAB and SkyDrive to achieve type certification. Reaching this agreement indicates that both parties have aligned on ensuring the overall safety of the aircraft. It is considered a core certification milestone, helping to reduce future certification risks.
In addition to the General Certification Plan, aircraft certification also requires agreement on other certification plans covering hardware and performance aspects such as structures, systems, electric motors, and noise. SkyDrive has submitted these plans to JCAB for review.
Once all certification plans are approved, the project will enter the compliance testing phase, which is expected to commence in the near future. This represents a significant step towards achieving eVTOL aircraft type certification and can be seen as the final stage of the development phase.
The type certification process includes six steps: certification application, certification basis, means of compliance, certification plans, testing and analysis, and final verification. With the General Certification Plan agreement reached, SkyDrive is steadily progressing to complete steps 3 and 4, with the means of compliance 95% complete and certification plans 50% complete.
Arnaud Coville, Chief Technology Officer of SkyDrive Inc., stated: "Reaching an agreement with JCAB on the General Certification Plan is a key milestone for SkyDrive. This agreement shortens the timeline for compliance activities and reduces risks, indicating that our certification work with JCAB and the FAA is progressing well. Only a handful of companies globally have reached this stage."
SkyDrive plans to first advance the type certification with JCAB, and then, in collaboration with Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), seek progress on the certification path with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The company aims to achieve the commercial launch of its eVTOL in 2028 and continues to steadily advance aircraft development.
