Beta Technologies (stylized as BETA Technologies), is a South Burlington, Vermont-based aerospace manufacturer developing electric vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) and electric conventional take-off and landing (eCTOL) aircraft for the cargo, medical passenger, and military aviation industries.[2][3] The company has also developed a network of chargers which can supply power to their aircraft and other electric vehicles.[4][5] Training programs for future electric aircraft pilots and maintainers are also provided.[6]
The company was founded by Kyle Clark in 2017 and by 2024 had 650 employees.[1]
History
BETA Technologies’ A250 eVTOL prototype aircraft
Beta Technologies was incorporated in 2017 in Burlington, Vermont by Kyle Clark, an experienced pilot, engineer and entrepreneur.[7][8] In order to become the company's first test pilot, he learned to fly helicopters, and earned FAA qualifications for a powered lift rating.[8]
The company identified its first customer as United Therapeutics, which under founder and CEO Martine Rothblatt was looking for efficient transportation methods for organs intended for human transplant.[9] United Therapeutics awarded Beta a $48 million contract.[10][11]
On May 23, 2018, the company made the first tethered flight of its original 4,000lb (1,800kg) Ava XC eight motor, eight propeller battery-operated proof of concept aircraft.[11]
The company came out of stealth in January 2019.[4] That year, the Ava XC became the world's heaviest eVTOL aircraft to fly.[4]
In February 2020, the company began participating in the United States Air Force Agility Prime program that seeks to advance electric air mobility. In May, the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center announced that the company, along with Joby Aviation, would progress to the third phase of the program.[12][13] In June, the company unveiled its second aircraft prototype, ALIA-250.[14]
In March 2021, the ALIA-250 made a test flight from Plattsburgh, New York, across Lake Champlain to Burlington, Vermont.[15] In April, United Parcel Service (UPS) entered into a contract for ten ALIA-250 aircraft to be supplied in 2024, which included the option for UPS to acquire up to 150 more aircraft.[16] UPS announced it planned to have them travel directly to and from UPS facilities, rather than use airports.[17] In April, Blade Urban Air Mobility made a commitment to purchase up to 20 ALIA aircraft, becoming BETA's first passenger service company.[18] In May, the U.S. Air Force's Public Affairs office announced that Beta Technologies was granted the Air Force's first airworthiness certificate as a part of the AFWERX Agility Prime program, allowing the military to begin using the company's aircraft for test flights.[19] In July, the company completed a 205-mile crewed flight of its aircraft, its longest flight up to that point.[20]
The company announced on January 31, 2022, that it had won a U.S. Army contract to support flight testing of its ALIA electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. The partnership is designed to help the Army test specific military cargo and logistics missions for eVTOLs, while allowing Beta to accelerate development for both military and civil applications. Initially, Army engineers and Beta's team would evaluate how ALIA might best be applied to specific missions by measuring its range, altitude, endurance, and payload limits.[21] In March 2022, the company hosted the United States Air Force and USAF test pilots flew the ALIA aircraft for the first time.[22]
In April 2022, aircraft lessor Lease Corporation International placed an order for fifty ALIA aircraft,[23] and in August that year, vertical lift aircraft operator Bristow Helicopters ordered five ALIA with options for an additional fifty.[24]
In May 2022, an ALIA aircraft completed a flight of 1,400+ miles in total, from New York State to Arkansas. This included stops along the way for recharging on the company's network.[25] The ALIA was included in X-Plane 12, desktop simulation software developed by Laminar Research, in October 2022.[26]
In December 2022, an ALIA completed another test flight after traveling 876 miles to UPS Worldport, where its founder was met by U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.[27] The same month, the company completed a FAA-sponsored 50-ft battery drop test with the National Institute of Aviation Research as part of crashworthiness determination for the eVTOL industry.[28] Also in December, BETA was selected as one of four developers to be a part of Air New Zealand’s Mission Next Generation aircraft program.[29]
By the end of 2022, the company had begun to repurpose an Energizer Battery plant in St. Albans, Vermont for use as its primary battery production and validation facility.[30]
In March 2023, the company sought FAA certification for a conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) variant of its ALIA aircraft, dubbed the CX300, and had received orders for the new product from Bristow, Air New Zealand, and United Therapeutics.[31] The company said that FAA test pilots had flown the aircraft during a qualification evaluation earlier that year.[3] It also opened an office in Montreal.[32]
BETA Technologies’ final assembly and production facility in South Burlington, Vermont
In October 2023, the company opened a 188,500-square-foot production facility at Burlington International Airport. This is reportedly capable of producing up to 300 aircraft per year, with a planned Phase II buildout intended to double in size.[33]
BETA Technologies’ 320kw charge cube
In April 2024, the ALIA-250 aircraft completed a piloted transition, going from hover to wing-borne flight and then back to hover before landing.[34] Also that month, the company announced that it had received certification for its 320kw "charge cube" from the Underwriters Laboratory.[35]
In July 2024, the company completed several military exercises in collaboration with the Department of Defense, for the Air Force and Air National Guard, including cargo transport and a medivac simulation.[36]
In September 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agreed a $20 million contract with the company to install its chargers at 22 sites across the East and Gulf coasts.[37] Also that month, BETA unveiled the prototype of its five-passenger ALIA aircraft.[38] and in October the company raised $318 million of new investment, led by Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, which brought its total capital to over $1 billion.[39]
Technology
eVTOL aircraft can take off and land without the use of a runway, allowing smaller loads to be delivered directly to recipients,[40] whereas eCTOL require conventional, runway-dependent operations. The company’s eVTOL and eCTOL (fixed wing) aircraft share many design features: both are powered by the same internally-developed electric pusher motor.[3]
The company uses electric motors as they are reportedly quieter and have a smaller carbon footprint with zero operational emissions compared to an equivalent gasoline engine. Electric propulsion aircraft also require less maintenance.[4] The company claims they are also more efficient than combustion engines and have constant torque across all speeds, which enables control without helicopter-like complexity.[41] The motors run from lithium-ion batteries.[28]
Products
Beta Technologies develops electric aircraft and a network of charging stations to support them.
ALIA-250 – The A250 is an all-electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft that uses four top-mounted lift motors and one rear pusher motor to achieve vertical capabilities as well as wing-borne flight while in cruise.[42] It is designed to charge in under an hour, and carry five passengers or cargo for up to 250 nautical miles (nmi), which is the basis for the model number.[43] The design of the 50-ft wing was inspired by the arctic tern, a migratory bird known for its long flights. Its engines provide separate lift and thrust, as opposed to the tilt-rotor design of AVA, with a planned maximum range of 250nm at a weight of 6,000lbs and a cruise speed of 170 miles per hour.[32][43] In April 2024, this design achieved a switch from vertical to normal flight.[34]
CX300 – The CX300 is an all-electric conventional take-off and landing aircraft that is designed to charge in under an hour, and can be used in passenger, cargo, medical, or military configurations. The aircraft is powered by one rear-mounted pusher motor and its lift is created by the same 50-ft wing.[3]
Charging infrastructure – Beta developed a line of purpose-built chargers to support the deployment of electric aircraft. By September 2024, the company had opened 32 sites, with more than 50 other locations planned.[44] All Beta chargers can work with ground based electric vehicles in addition to electric aircraft.[5][45] The company also develops elevated landing pads that, when coupled with chargers, provide an off-airport landing option.[46][47]
A vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft is one that can take off and land vertically without relying on a runway. This classification can include a variety of types of aircraft including helicopters as well as thrust-vectoring fixed-wing aircraft and other hybrid aircraft with powered rotors such as cyclogyros/cyclocopters and gyrodynes.
The air taxi market is an application of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) – air transportation systems that utilize advanced technologies such as vertical takeoffs, autonomous capabilities, or fully-electric systems – for short to mid range on-demand flights. Many AAM vehicles are designed for Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) or Vertical Takeoff and Landings (VTOL); electric VTOL aircraft are also prominent, known as eVTOLs.
The Short SC.1 was the first British fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) jet aircraft. It was developed by Short Brothers. It was powered by an arrangement of five Rolls-Royce RB.108 turbojets, four of which were used for vertical flight and one for conventional horizontal flight. The SC.1 had the distinction of being the first British fixed-wing VTOL aircraft and the first one to transition between vertical and horizontal flight modes; it was also the first VTOL-capable aircraft with a fly-by-wire control system.
Aircraft have different ways to take off and land. Conventional airplanes accelerate along the ground until reaching a speed that is sufficient for the airplane to takeoff and climb at a safe speed. Some airplanes can take off at low speed, this being a short takeoff. Some aircraft such as helicopters and Harrier jump jets can take off and land vertically. Rockets also usually take off vertically, but some designs can land horizontally.
The Vertical Take-Off and Landing Experimental Aircraft program was an American research project sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The goal of the program was to demonstrate a VTOL aircraft design that can take off vertically and efficiently hover, while flying faster than conventional rotorcraft. There have been many previous attempts, most of them unsuccessful as of 2015.
Urban air mobility (UAM) is the use of small, highly automated aircraft to carry passengers or cargo at lower altitudes in urban and suburban areas which have been developed in response to traffic congestion. It usually refers to existing and emerging technologies such as traditional helicopters, vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft (VTOL), electrically propelled vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft (eVTOL), and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). These aircraft are characterized by the use of multiple electric-powered rotors or fans for lift and propulsion, along with fly-by-wire systems to control them. Inventors have explored urban air mobility concepts since the early days of powered flight. However, advances in materials, computerized flight controls, batteries and electric motors improved innovation and designs beginning in the late 2010s. Most UAM proponents envision that the aircraft will be owned and operated by professional operators, as with taxis, rather than by private individuals.
Lilium N.V. is a German aerospace company which is the developer of the Lilium Jet, an electrically powered personal air vehicle capable of VTOL flight.
The Lilium Jet is a prototype German electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) electrically powered airplane designed by Lilium GmbH. A seven-seat production version is planned.
The Airbus Vahana was an electric-powered eight-propeller VTOL personal air vehicle prototype financed by A³, by Airbus and Airbus Urban Mobility. The Vahana project started in 2016 as one of the first projects at A³, the advanced projects and partnerships outpost of Airbus Group in Silicon Valley. Airbus "envision[s] Vahana being used by everyday commuters as a cost-comparable replacement for short-range urban transportation like cars or trains". It was planned to be a part of urban air mobility. The project was finished in December 2019.
Joby Aviation is a United States venture-backed aviation company, developing an electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft that it intends to operate as an air taxi service. Joby Aviation is headquartered in Santa Cruz, California, and has offices in San Carlos, California; Marina, California; and Munich, Germany.
Volocopter GmbH is a German aircraft manufacturer based in Bruchsal and founded by Alexander Zosel and Stephan Wolf. The company specializes in the design of electric multirotor helicopters in the form of personal air vehicles, designed for air taxi use. The CEO is Dirk Hoke and chairman Stefan Klocke.
Vertical Aerospace Ltd. is an aerospace manufacturer based in Bristol, England. It designs and builds zero emission, electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) electrically powered aircraft.
An electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is a variety of VTOL aircraft that uses electric power to hover, take off, and land vertically. This technology came about owing to major advances in electric propulsion and the emerging need for new aerial vehicles for urban air mobility that can enable greener and quieter flights. Electric and hybrid propulsion systems (EHPS) have also the potential of lowering the operating costs of aircraft.
The Wisk Cora, also known as Generation 4 and Generation 5, is an American autonomous personal air vehicle prototype previously developed by the Kitty Hawk Corporation, and subsequently by Wisk Aero.
The VoloRegion is an electrically powered aircraft that can take off and land vertically (eVTOL). It is being developed by the German company Volocopter.
Archer Aviation Inc. is a publicly traded company headquartered in San Jose, California, which is developing eVTOL aircraft.
Wisk Aero is an aerospace manufacturer based in Mountain View, California, United States. The company develops self-flying electric vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft designed to be operated as air taxis. The company was formed in 2019 as a partnership between Boeing and Google co-founder Larry Page's Kitty Hawk aircraft company.
JoeBen Bevirt is an American serial entrepreneur and the founder and the chief executive officer of Joby Aviation, a California-based aerospace company. He is the recipient of the 2018 Haueter Award and holds more than 160 U.S. patents in aerodynamics, aircraft design, electric and hydrogen propulsion.
Advanced air mobility (AAM) are systems that incorporate support for next-generation transport such as such as remotely piloted, autonomous, or vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft. This includes those powered by electric or hybrid-electric propulsion.
TCab Technology Co., Ltd. is a company based in Shanghai, China that develops and manufactures electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The name "TCab" stands for "time taxi." The company produces zero-emission eVTOL aircraft for public use in advanced air mobility (AAM) air ridesharing services.
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