Southeast Asia charter group PhilJets this week boosted its commitment to add VTOL aircraft to its fleet by announcing plans to buy five more of the hybrid-electric Atea model being developed by French start-up Ascendance. Reported on April 22, the agreement means that the Philippines-based operator now expects to acquire 15 of the four-passenger aircraft in total.

Ascendance and PhilJets said they have launched a strategic partnership to explore how the Atea might best be deployed to boost regional air services across the main islands that make up the Philippines. The letter of intent was signed during a recent meeting held between the Philippines’ Department of Transportation and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the capital Manila as part of a wider French government tour that also included visits to Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Japan.

PhilJets operates a mixed fleet of jets and turboprops, including various Beechcraft, Cessna Citation, and Bombardier Challenger models. It also has several helicopters, including the Airbus H130 and Bell 505 and 429s.

According to Toulouse-based Ascendance, it now holds 617 provisional orders for the Atea, which features eight distinctive ducted fan rotors in its wing and canard, plus a propeller. Formed in 2018, the company said it is now building a full-scale prototype to be used for flight testing. The propulsion system will include Safran’s EngineUs electric motors and an as-yet unspecified turbogenerator.

"The design of the full-size prototype has been frozen, and many parts of the Atea prototype have already been produced and delivered to our flight test center," Thibault Baldivia, co-founder and chief commercial officer told AIN. "The approval assessment lans for all the aircraft sub-systems were sent to EASA to get our permit to fly for the prototype."

Main airframe parts for the prototype have already been produced and Ascendance aims to start flight testing in late 2025 or early 2026. It said it has been testing the hybrid-electric propulsion system for the past 18 months.

The Atea, which will operate with a pilot on board, is expected to have a range of around 217 nm. Ascendance said the projected cruise speed will be 109 knots, and the aircraft will have a payload of 990 pounds.

Other prospective operators for the Atea include French helicopter operators HeliFirst and Jet Systems Helicoptères Services, Singapore-based Evfly and Yugo, and Flyshare in California.