Elroy Air has revealed the Chaparral C1 hybrid-electric vtol (vertical take-off and landing) cargo aircraft. The aircraft was the first of its kind and brought capabilities previously invisible to unmanned air vehicles (UAV) to the fast logistics sector in several industries. Chaparrral is a vtol aircraft “Lift + Cruise” transition with full carbon composite aircraft, and hybrid-electric powertrain based turbines for long-distance mission capabilities.
Chaparral C1 displays eight vertical lift fans, four electrical drags distributed for a flight forward, and configuration of high winged aircraft. It is also designed to fit 40 feet shipping containers or C-130 cargo planes, allowing it to be sent quickly and deployed anywhere in the world. The initial chaparral prototype was flown in 2019, showing several main aircraft design systems even though commercial design will still undergo field testing and evaluation.
Elroy Air has developed a lightweight modular aerodynamic cargo pod which can be loaded before by land personnel and taken by the plane before taking off. At the shipping location, the cargo pod was lowered to the ground and was released after the system had landed. The Chaparral system can take other podts that have been packaged and transport POD to the next destination, creating what the number to the BI-Directional conveyor belt through the sky. Chaparral can carry between 300 to 500 pounds of goods during a range of 300 miles while only needing a 50-foot landing area to deliver and take the cargo.
The company said that he had received an agreement for more than 500 aircraft from customers providing express and other shipping packages to regional areas, defense and humanitarian business representing $ 1 billion in orders.
“Chaparrral is an important part of the future of express logistics,” said Co-founder of Elroy Air and CEO David Merrill. “It’s built for final automation to the end, and it will be safe and efficiently making express shipping possible in thousands of new places. This is a drone delivery that is faster than land transportation and lower costs than traditional planes today.”
Chaparral C1 is certainly an interesting development in the UAV sector with some use cases that seem feasible. Intelligence and some widespread default redudansi shows that it must represent a strong and reliable system. Although designed to be operated independently, it can also be tested remotely to meet air safety requirements in certain areas. While the company has obtained some serious support, the contract will only be filled with successful field testing and design validation. The potential to save lives by providing emergency supplies, helping in firefighters, reaching long-distance communities and reserve pilots from entering the combat zone shows that everything points to a bright future for airplanes.
Elrio Air is a Terospace start-up based in South San Francisco, California and financed leading venture capital companies including Lockheed Martin Ventures, Catapult Ventures, Marlinsspike Capital and Proserity7 Ventures along with early angel executives. The company also calculates NASA, Air Force A.S. and the Navy as a collaborative partner that is evaluating the platform for deployment in the field.