Whisper Aero is a United States venture-backed aerospace company, developing ultra-quiet, efficient, and scalable electric propulsion for aerospace, defense, and commercial applications. [1] Whisper Aero is headquartered in Crossville, Tennessee, and has an additional office in Nashville, Tennessee. [2]
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Aerospace |
| Founded | 2020 in Crossville, Tennessee |
| Founder |
|
| Headquarters | Crossville, Tennessee, U.S |
| Website | whisper |
Whisper Aero was founded in 2020 by Mark Moore and Ian Villa. [3]
On June 12, 2023, at the 2023 AIAA AVIATION convention, Whisper Aero came out of stealth mode. With the announcement came four published papers “The Business Case for Regional Air Mobility At Scale," “Unlocking Low-Cost Regional Air Mobility through Whisper Aero Propulsive Coupling,” “Distributed Electric Propulsion and Vehicle Integration with Ducted Fans,” and “Vortex Particle Method for Electric Ducted Fans in Non Axisymmetric Flow,” which detail more about Whisper Aero’s technology and showcased how it can be integrated to enable the next generation of flight. [4]
On June 13, 2023, a scale model of Whisper Aero’s “Whisper Jet”, a vision vehicle, was unveiled. According to Whisper Aero’s website, the “Whisper Jet" aims to show how its electric ducted fan technology can help unlock regional air mobility at scale. It includes an outboard horizontal configuration with twenty-two of Whisper Aero’s electric ducted fans integrated into a "jetfoil" along its main wing. [5] [6]
In July 2023, Whisper Aero announced a new flight test center located at Crossville Memorial Airport. The funding for the $1.2 million-dollar 8,000 square foot hangar came from the State of Tennessee, who appropriated legislative funds for the new development. The project was set to be completed in early 2024. [7]
On October 18, 2023, Whisper Aero unveiled their WhisperDriveTM-enabled leaf blower concept, which makes use of a scaled-down version of their electric ducted fan technology, demonstrating scalability and adaptability to a diverse range of markets. [8] [9]
On December 5, 2023, at the 2023 TENNSmart Mobility Expo, Whisper Aero announced ReconnecTN (pronounced “reconnectin"), a "multi-entity, cross-disciplinary coalition committed to bringing multimodal sustainable regional transportation to Tennessee." ReConnecTN focuses on five areas deemed critical to the success of Regional Air Mobility: "Aviation Innovations, Existing Airports, More Mobility, Economic Growth, and Energy Resilience." Whisper Aero detailed the specifics of these five areas in its paper, “The Business Case for Regional Air Mobility at Scale.” [10] Other ReconnecTN coalition members include Reliable Robotics, AvPorts, HOK, Crossville Municipal Airport, Tennessee Department of Transportation, JSX, Azure Flight Support, Tennessee Technological University, Crossville Economic Chamber of Commerce, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and PowerUp America. [11]
On March 4, 2024, Whisper Aero unveiled a 100-seat battery-electric airliner concept at the Ohio Air Mobility Symposium, which was submitted to a new NASA program to further develop the concept. [12] [13]
In June 2024, the WhisperDriveTM-enabled leaf blower was voted among the “Top 16 Coolest Things Made in Tennessee”. [14]
On July 18, 2024, Whisper Aero hosted the official ribbon cutting for the opening of their Flight Test Center. The 8,000 square foot facility features a high bay for testing and office space for onsite engineering. [15]
On April 18, 2023, Whisper Aero announced it raised $32 million in a Series A round of funding, including from Menlo Ventures, EVE Atlas, Capricorn's Technology Impact Fund, and Connor Capital, with additional participation by Kindred Ventures, Abstract Ventures, Moving Capital, AeroX Ventures, Cosmos Ventures, Linse Capital, and LaunchTN. [16]
Whisper Aero's website currently shows a portfolio of three electric engines. [17]
eQ120
The Whisper Aero eQ120 has a five-inch diameter fan and can produce five-pound force of thrust at a noise level below 35 dBA. [18]
The eQ120, Whisper Aero's smallest fan can be used for applications such as leaf blowers, delivery drones, and attritable (expendable) defense assets according to their website. [19]
eQ160
The Whisper Aero eQ160 has a six-inch diameter and can produce ten pounds of force at a noise level below 37 dBA. [20]
Whisper's eQ160 can be used for smaller drones, such as the Group 2 demonstrator drone showcased on their website. [21]
eQ250
Whisper Aero’s largest standard propulsor, the eQ250 has a ten-inch diameter and can produce seventy pounds of force. [22]
Whisper Aero's eQ250 can be used for larger Group 3+ drones, as well as fixed wing aircraft according to their website. [23]
Most recently Whisper Aero unveiled the Whisper Swift Glider at the July 18 opening of their flight test center. The Whisper Swift Glider is a modified version of an ultralight foot-launched glider from Belgian company Aeriane's Swift Glider that utilizes the eQ250. In which Ian Villa, co-founder and chief operating officer of Whisper Aero stated that, "The eQ250 thruster has already been tested in an anechoic wind tunnel at speeds up to Mach 0.2", and that the "demonstrator glider [Swift Glider] allows us to qualify fight hours and performance on this propulsor type before integration on customer vehicles". [24]
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