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News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

Electric airplane developer recovering from financial woes

Bye Begins Building eFlyer 2 Electric Trainer Prototype

Bye Aerospace says it’s about to hit another major milestone in the certification of its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/eflyer">eFlyer 2</a> electrically powered trainer aircraft.&nbsp;
The Denver-based start-up is nearing the completion of FAA approval for its means of compliance and certification plans, the company announced last week. This puts it on track to have the first all-electric, fixed-wing aircraft to be certified under the FAA’s Part 23 Amendment 64 regulations.
Bye has already received FAA approval for 15 of the 16 system-specific certification plans (SSCPs) for the full means of compliance certification, and it expects the last one to be approved by the end of July, the company said. Once all the SSCPs are approved, Bye will be ready to begin the testing and compliance demonstration phases of certification.&nbsp;
Testing has already begun on the structure, the production-conformed Siemens motor, aircraft components such as the main wing spar assembly, and other subsystems, George Bye, founder and CEO of Bye Aerospace, told&nbsp;FutureFlight.
Bye added that the testing and compliance demonstration work could take more than two years and will require the company to produce three&nbsp;fully production-conformed flight test aircraft. "Once these are ready and company ground and flight test has progressed to an appropriate hand-off point, integration of flight testing with the FAA will begin," he said.
Bye is developing the two-seat eFlyer 2 and four-seat eFlyer 4 to be used for flight training and other commercial applications, like passenger charter flights. The company is also working on a larger, eight-seat <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-01-24/bye-reports-growing-backlog-eflyer-800-electric-business-aircraft">eFlyer 800</a>.&nbsp;
As with the other eFlyer models, the eFlyer 2 is built to be highly efficient and cost-effective. Bye says the eFlyer 2 has more than double the aerodynamic efficiency of traditional aircraft similar in size, and the aircraft’s Safran&nbsp;100-kW <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2020-11-16/bye-aerospace-signs-deal-safran-electric-motors">Engineus electric smart motors</a> will have a high efficiency rating of 94 percent.&nbsp;
Bye is also working with the British company Oxis Energy <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2019-11-06/bye-aerospace-and-battery-developer-oxis-work-boost-flight-times">to develop lithium-sulfur batteries</a> that could potentially allow the aircraft to fly up to twice as long on a single charge compared with traditional lithium-ion batteries.&nbsp;
The eFlyer 2 will be able to remain aloft for up to three hours at a cruise speed of 155 mph (250 km/h) and a maximum altitude of 14,000 feet (4,300 meters).&nbsp;
Between the eFlyer 2 and eFlyer 4, Bye has received more than 700 purchase deposits, according to the company’s website. The base price of the eFlyer 2 is $489,000, while the base price of the eFlyer 4 is $627,000. Bye told FutureFlight that the company already has a $1 billion backlog of provisional orders and that it has begun collecting deposits from customers for the eFlyer 2.

Science & Technology Editor

Bye Aerospace’s eFlyer 2 Makes Progress Toward FAA Approval

Japan’s Fuyo General Lease is investing in electric aircraft developer Bye Aerospace. The terms of the transaction announced this week are unclear, with no confirmed amount for the investment, which is resulting in an unspecified “third-party allocation" of new shares in the Colorado-based company.
Tokyo-based Fuyo has a diverse leasing portfolio that already includes some aircraft, as well as ships, automobiles, construction machinery, industrial tools, and IT/office equipment. In its newly published medium-term management plan, the company says it intends to increase the number of aircraft it owns at a rate of 10 a year over the next five years from the current total of 19 to 70.&nbsp;
However, Fuyo has not confirmed whether it intends to start offering Bye’s in-development eFlyer 2 and 4 light aircraft under leases, or the planned eight- to 12-seat eFlyer 800 model. “Through our investment in Bye Aerospace, we will work to expand the aviation business field by grasping the trends of global innovation in zero-emission technologies and contribute to the decarbonization of aviation,” said Fuyo in a press release.&nbsp;It did not respond to questions from&nbsp;FutureFlight&nbsp;about its specific intentions for the Bye aircraft.
Bye Aerospace founder and CEO George Bye confirmed that Fuyo’s investment and other capital it is now seeking to raise will fund continuing efforts to certify the eFlyer models and prepare to start production. He told FutureFlight that the company is making progress with work to make the molds, tools, fixtures, and parts to build the first production-conforming example of the two-seat eFlyer 2, with the second and third examples due to be ready over the next two years.
The timeline for service entry of the first two members of the eFlyer family appears to have slipped by more than two years, which&nbsp;Bye Aerospace mainly attributes to disruption caused by the Covid pandemic. The company&nbsp;is now indicating that the first production-conforming eFlyer 2 will begin “operational testing” in late 2022, with the second and third examples expected to start FAA flight testing in 2023. The company started flying an earlier eFlyer technology demonstrator (then designated as the SunFlyer) in February 2019.
In 2019, Bye Aerospace said it aimed to complete FAA Part 23 type certification for the eFlyer 2 in 2021. At that point, the eFlyer 4 was due to make its first flight in early 2021, but now the company is not declaring when this will happen but has said it expects to make further announcements later this year, indicating that the timeline for the larger aircraft is running about a year behind that for the eFlyer 2. "Certification and low-initial production will follow [completion of the flight test aircraft] for the eFlyer 2, and later for the eFlyer 4 [which is] expected to occur about a year after that," Bye explained.
In July 2020, it indicated that the first deliveries of the eFlyer 2, currently priced at $489,000, would be in late 2021, followed by those for the $627,000 eFlyer 4 at the end of 2022. In recent communications, Bye has not specified when it now intends to bring both models to market.
The eFlyer 2, which will feature Garmin’s G500 TXi avionics system, is mainly intended for use as a primary training aircraft. It is to be powered by Safran’s 110 kW (150 hp) Engineus 100 electric motor. A Siemens motor powered the earlier technology demonstrator.
Bye told FutureFlight that he expects the first production example of the eFlyer 2 to validate the performance benefits of electric propulsion demonstrated in tests of the earlier version of the aircraft, which is to be fitted with ASR’s Soteria whole-aircraft emergency recovery parachute system. It is expected to operate at speeds of up to 135 knots, with 220 nm range at a 96-knot cruise speed, and climb 1,200 feet per minute to a maximum altitude of 14,000 feet.
The company described the main benefits as follows: “Robust takeoff, climb, and relatively high-altitude cruise performance with little sensitivity to density altitude; reduced-center-of-gravity travel with only small trim changes reducing cruise trim drag and benefitting flight-path management or avgas-related heavy wing issues; and high-efficiency aerodynamics providing unprecedented cruise power-to-speed ratios and featuring great slow flight, approach to stall, and anti-spin entry characteristics.”
The four-seat eFlyer 4, for which Bye has yet to confirm the chosen propulsion systems, will be an advanced trainer and air taxi model. The company says that Safran is its propulsion partner and that it expects to release more information about other suppliers for the aircraft, along with performance details, by the end of 2022.
The larger eFlyer 800 model is intended as multirole general aviation aircraft that could appeal to current operators of twin turboprops such as Textron’s ubiquitous King Air family. Bye has said that this aircraft should make its first flight in 2024 with the aim of achieving type certification in 2027 and that it is still working on the propulsion system to be used for this model.
Bye has reported what it describes as a “production backlog” of almost 900 aircraft, including all three eFlyer models. It says that this is based on having collected “purchase deposit” agreements through which customers secure delivery positions after paying a non-refundable deposit. The deposit for the eFlyer 2 is $5,000, representing just over 1 percent of the purchase price.
Founded in 2014, Denver-based Bye Aerospace conducted an initial fund-raising round in 2018 that was led by the Subaru-SBI Innovation Fund. The Japanese automotive group did not disclose how much it invested. In July 2020, Bye announced a further $10 million funding round, half of which came from an undisclosed venture-capital group.&nbsp;Today, the company has 56 employees, supported by an additional 10 contractors.

Managing Editor

Charles Alcock

Japanese Leasing Group Fuyo Invests in Bye's Planned Electric Aircraft

Electric aircraft manufacturer Bye Aerospace says that the provisional order backlog for its eFlyer 800 twin-motor airplane has grown to include 135 purchase and option agreements. According to company CEO George Bye, it is aiming to certify and start deliveries in 2027, with work currently focused on developing the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/eflyer">eFlyer</a>'s propulsion system and making plans to start flying a prototype in 2024.
In April 2021, Bye confirmed the launch of what had been called the Envoy aircraft, rebranding it as the eFlyer 800. It is expected to provide an electric-powered alternative to popular utility twin-turboprops such as Textron's ubiquitous&nbsp;King Air family. 
The eFlyer&nbsp;800—which the manufacturer claims will drastically reduce operating costs and noise&nbsp;and eliminate greenhouse gas emissions compared with conventional turboprops—will offer a 65-inch-wide cabin for business aviation applications. A 12-seat commuter variant with uprated motors to accommodate the greater payload is also under consideration.
Across its entire range of models&nbsp;under development—which also include&nbsp;the two-seat eFlyer 2 and the four-seat eFlyer 4—Bye&nbsp;now lists nearly 900 aircraft in its backlog. The Denver-based company has&nbsp;732 paid purchase deposits&nbsp;and 162 paid, time-limited purchase option deposits.
“The response has been enthusiastically positive since we announced the eFlyer 800 in April of last year,” said CEO George Bye. “We are particularly grateful to our launch customers, Jet It and JetClub, for their endorsement of this groundbreaking program.”
“We are very serious about this aircraft and are looking forward to putting it into our operations around the world, including Europe and Asia,” noted Vishal Hiremath, co-founder of HondaJet fractional ownership operator Jet It, and CEO of its European affiliate JetClub. “We are confident of the solid engineering behind it and [are] eagerly waiting for entry into service.”
Bye added that Safran remains&nbsp;a supportive partner as his company continues to assess the most efficient electric powertrain using the French engine maker’s Engineus electric motors and GeneusGrid electric distribution and network protection system.
“After two years of testing in Safran lab, we have validated all the key features and demonstrated the unrivaled performance of our Engineus 500,” said Hervé Blanc, executive v-p&nbsp;and general manager with Safran Electrical &amp; Power. “This electric motor can deliver 750 kW maximum takeoff power, which is the perfect fit for the eFlyer 800.”
Bye is in the process of obtaining FAA certification for the smaller eFlyer 2 and 4 aircraft, which are mainly aimed at the pilot training and light aviation markets, but the schedule for this&nbsp;has been in flux due to the Covid pandemic.&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Senior Editor

Curt Epstein

Bye Reports Growing Backlog For eFlyer 800 Electric Business Aircraft

The KLM Flight Academy this week placed purchase deposits for six of Bye Aerospace’s eFlyer 2 light aircraft and eight of the larger eFlyer 4 version. The flight school, which is part of the KLM-Air France airline group, is based at Groningen Airport Eelde in the Netherlands. It will use the all-electric aircraft for initial pilot training.
“We are honored to add the first major airline’s flight academy, KLM Flight Academy, to our expanding list of eFlyer customers,” said Bye Aerospace CEO George Bye. “In addition to helping them become carbon-neutral, <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/eflyer">eFlyers</a> will help the academy significantly reduce the noise signature in the Eelde area.”
According to the Denver-based manufacturer, the eFlyers will offer fivefold lower operating costs, no carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, and decreased noise, compared with current training aircraft. It estimates they will eventually eliminate the release of millions of metric tons of CO2 each year from flight training activity.
&nbsp;“We are excited to become part of the eFlyer development of Bye Aerospace and look forward to becoming a zero-emission flight academy in support of our parent company’s development and strategy,” said Bart de Vries, managing director of KLM Flight Academy.
The eFlyer 2 features the Garmin G500 TXi avionics system, including high-resolution touchscreen display, VFR- and IFR-compatible GPS, navigation and communications systems, and standby and transponder capabilities as well as electric propulsion information, synthetic vision, terrain and traffic alerts, and geo-referenced charts.&nbsp;
Like the eFlyer 4, the eFlyer 2 is powered by the Safran Engineus air-cooled 110-kW (150-hp) electric motor, built from carbon fiber, and is fitted with the Soteria whole-aircraft emergency recovery parachute system. 
The list price for the two-seat&nbsp;model is $489,000. The aircraft has a maximum cruising speed of 159 mph, three hours’ endurance, and a range of 253 miles.
The four-seat eFlyer4 has a maximum cruising speed of 230 mph and a range of 380 miles. Its list price is $627,000.

KLM Flight Academy Orders Bye eFlyers To Train Airline Pilots

Aircraft lessor Skye Aviation has ordered&nbsp;15 of Bye Aerospace's new eFlyer 800 electric aircraft, provisionally increasing the manufacturer's order total&nbsp;to 800. According to company founder and CEO George Bye, each order&nbsp;for the nine-seat fixed-wing aircraft is backed by a $25,000 deposit, and the purchase price for the model is expected to be around $6 million when it enters service in 2025.
Announced earlier this year, the <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/eflyer">eFlyer</a> 800 is being designed to carry seven passengers and two pilots with a range of 575 miles&nbsp;and speeds to 368 mph. It will be powered by a pair of dual-wound Safran Engineus electric motors&nbsp;with battery packs designed to recharge within 20 to&nbsp;30 minutes. The batteries are divided into four packs, two in the aircraft floor and one in the rear of each electric motor on the wings.&nbsp;
According to Bye, there is a high degree of safety redundancy between the two battery packs with a power management system determining available power levels. "This is literally a four-motor airplane with two props and a four-fold electric storage system," Bye explained. "The key thing here is that this is a three-hour airplane. It’s a thoughtful integration of a whole [system]&nbsp;as opposed to just chucking in batteries of a certain technology—sophisticated&nbsp;yet simple and redundant systems integrated into a structure that is incredibly sleek. This has a lift-over-drag ratio of about 20 to one.”&nbsp;
Bye said the aircraft would use a proprietary design for the battery packs and thermal management system. “The secret sauce is how the cell is packed, the thermal management, and how you maintain safety. The decision-makers and the FAA want to know how you maintain safety,” he said, adding that “every single battery cell is monitored—full time. Any bad player is taken out.” Bye said the company had been flying such a thermal management system on its prototype aircraft for over five years.&nbsp;
Like Bye Aerospace, Skye Aviation is based in Denver. It claims to be the world's first leasing company with a portfolio entirely composed of electric aircraft. Other announced customers for the eFlyer 800 include private flight group Jet It and its European affiliate JetClub and Rheinland Air Service, which is Bye's distributor in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.
Meanwhile, Bye Aerospace also is in the process of obtaining FAA Part&nbsp;23 certification for its eFlyer 2, a two-seat primary trainer, and the larger, four-seat eFlyer 4 designed for air taxi, cargo, and advanced training uses. Orders for these models are backed by $5,000 and $10,000 deposits,&nbsp;respectively, according to the company.&nbsp;
During a press conference at the EAA AirVenture show on July 29, the company also announced that Garmin would supply its G500 TXi avionics system for the eFlyer 2. The package provides a high-resolution touchscreen display, VFR and IFR GPS/NAV/COMM, standby, and transponder capabilities as well as electric propulsion information, synthetic vision, terrain and traffic alerting, and geo-referenced charts.&nbsp;“We want to provide our flight school customers with the best user experience possible, and we believe the G500 TXi is the ideal avionics package,” Bye said.&nbsp;
The company has upgraded its performance targets for the eFlyer 2 eFlyer 4. The aircraft now has a cruising speed of 159 mph, three hours’ endurance, and 253 miles&nbsp;of range. Speed on the eFlyer 4 increases to 230 mph, thanks to a 200-kW motor. The range is now 380 miles. “People are going to be ‘shocked,’ how fast electric can be,” Bye told FutureFlight. “That’s Cirrus SR-22, that’s [Beechcraft]&nbsp;Bonanza kind of speed.”&nbsp;

Electric Leasing Group Skye Signs for Bye's eFlyer 800s

North America-based fractional ownership provider Jet It and its European affiliate JetClub are the launch customers for the recently introduced eFlyer 800 all-electric, cabin-class airplane, Bye Aerospace confirmed today.
In April, Bye unveiled plans to move into the business aviation market with the eFlyer 800, which will be powered by a pair of Safran's new Engineus electric motors. It will&nbsp;be able to carry seven passengers and&nbsp;fly up to 500 nm (575 miles)&nbsp;with 45-minute IFR reserves and have a cruise speed of up to 320 knots (368 mph).
The Denver-based manufacturer had said at the time that it already had “customer deposits agreements” in hand from undisclosed air taxi, charter, and cargo operators in the U.S. and Europe.
Revealing its initial customers with today’s announcement, Bye Aerospace said Jet It and JetClub signed&nbsp;a purchase agreement&nbsp;for a fleet of eFlyer 800 aircraft. The announcement, which did not detail the number of firm orders, added that the agreement additionally includes a number of eFlyer 800 purchase options, along with four eFlyer 4 airplane purchase deposits.
As launch customers, Jet It founder and CEO Glenn Gonzales and JetClub founder and CEO Vishal Hiremath will join Bye Aerospace’s Strategic Advisory Council for the eFlyer.
“As an aviation company run by aviators, we believe electric propulsion is the next major innovation in air travel, and Bye Aerospace will be one of the very few manufacturers able to certify an environmentally sustainable aircraft that meets the needs of our expanding customer base,” Gonzales said.
“Sustainability is a core pillar of the JetClub philosophy,” added Hiremath. “With the addition of the eFlyer 800 to our fleet, we take a leap forward in our sustainability goals.” 
Bye Aerospace, which is targeting a 2025 certification date for the eFlyer 800, said the development of the aircraft comes in response to growing demands for all-electric regional aircraft options that can have increased capacity but lower operating costs over traditional turboprop aircraft.
The company estimates that the eFlyer 800 will operate at about one-fifth the costs of current twin turboprops. Aimed at the air taxi, cargo, regional, and charter markets, the eFlyer 800 will sport two wing-mounted electric motors, each with dual redundant motor windings, and be equipped with quad-redundant battery packs&nbsp;and a full airplane parachute. Bye is estimating a recharge time of between 20 and 30 minutes.
Other potential features of the eFlyer 800 include an emergency auto-landing system, an option for supplemental power solar cells, and in-wheel electric taxi. 
While it moves forward on the eFlyer 800, Bye Aerospace is working toward Part 23 certification of its two- and four-seat electric aircraft, the eFlyer 2 and eFlyer 4.

Editor, AIN monthly magazine

Kerry Lynch

Bye Aerospace Reveals Jet It, JetClub as Launch Customers for eFlyer 800

Electronic-warfare-technology group L3Harris Technologies is teaming with Bye Aerospace to develop a multi-mission version of Bye’s new eFlyer 800 all-electric aircraft. The model, which can seat up to nine people, will be adapted by L3 to carry equipment used for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations, taking advantage of its 1,540-pound payload.
U.S.-based L3Harris offers a range of ISR modification packages, such as its SPYDR Rapid Aircraft Payload Deployment System. The company has previously converted a variety of business aircraft for military missions, including Beech King Airs and Gulfstream G550 jets.
According to Bye Aerospace, the operating costs for the eFlyer 800 will be around one-fifth of those for comparable jet-A-fueled aircraft. However, its maximum range—around 575 miles—will be less than one-third of the range of many aircraft now used for ISR missions.&nbsp;
Denver-based Bye Aerospace indicated that it expects to complete type certification over the next four to six years&nbsp;but said that it already has “customer deposit agreements” from undisclosed air taxi, charter, and cargo operators in the U.S. and Europe.
Like its smaller eFlyer 2 and 4 models, the eFlyer 800 will be powered by a pair of Safran’s Engineus 500 kW (670 HP) motors. These will be supplied with the French company’s GeneusGrid&nbsp;electric distribution and network protection system. 
The new model is expected to feature new lithium-sulfur batteries being developed by UK-based Oxis Energy. Bye is aiming for a recharge time of 20 to 30 minutes.
According to Bye, the reduced noise profile of its all-electric aircraft will also prove beneficial for low-altitude missions. The company says that with its smaller eFlyer prototypes it is recording noise levels that are around 30 dB lower than those of comparable piston- or turboprop-powered aircraft.
“These platforms offer sustainability and mission advantages that will benefit a new generation of tactical manned ISR mission aircraft,” said Luke Savoie, aviation services president with L3Harris.

L3Harris Enlists Bye's eFlyer 800 Into Military ISR Service

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Bye Aerospace says its eFlyer 800 will carry up to nine people on flights of up to 500 nm, powered by a pair of new Safran electric motors.

Bye Electric eFlyer 800 Seeks To End King Air's Reign

Aviation Safety Resources (ASR) has conducted the first tests for the parachute recovery system it is developing for the Bye Aerospace eFlyer 2 electric aircraft. The company today reported that in late February it deployed the whole-aircraft parachute with a load equivalent to the weight of the two-seat aircraft in the first of a series of tests conducted at Henderson in Nevada.
For the test, ASR filled barrels of water to represent the weight of the eFlyer 2. These were attached to the parachute and then dropped from a helicopter at 6,600 feet with the aircraft accelerating to the maximum speed at which the system can be deployed. 
“This&nbsp;was the first in a series of tests to qualify the eFlyer 2 parachute system to ASTM standards and to make sure the canopy will withstand the load put on it,” explained ASR president and CEO Larry Williams. 
In the next phase of testing, the company will make drops at 1.15 times the maximum weight and speed needed to recover the eFlyer 2 in an emergency. “This testing represents a real-world environment to make sure the system provides maximum safety and to demonstrate that&nbsp;the parachute canopy is robust,” said Williams. 
If ASR can demonstrate a successful deployment with the extra weight and speed, the system will meet the requirements of both standards body ASTM International and the FAA to demonstrate safety performance that is deemed to be 1.5 times that which would be required in operational situations. The company released a video of the <a href="https://youtu.be/1oqgG6_cdhw">first test</a>.
Meanwhile, Bye Aerospace said it has just signed agreements with customers for four more eFlyer aircraft, taking its backlog for the eFlyer 2, the four-seat eFlyer 4, and the planned eight-seat Envoy model to 721 units. On March 1, the company said it had started assembling the fuselage for the first production example of the eFlyer 2 in anticipation of completing FAA type certification.

Bye Aerospace

News

Bye Begins Building eFlyer 2 Electric Trainer Prototype

Bye Aerospace’s eFlyer 2 Makes Progress Toward FAA Approval

Japanese Leasing Group Fuyo Invests in Bye's Planned Electric Aircraft

Bye Reports Growing Backlog For eFlyer 800 Electric Business Aircraft

KLM Flight Academy Orders Bye eFlyers To Train Airline Pilots

Electric Leasing Group Skye Signs for Bye's eFlyer 800s

Bye Aerospace Reveals Jet It, JetClub as Launch Customers for eFlyer 800

L3Harris Enlists Bye's eFlyer 800 Into Military ISR Service

Bye Electric eFlyer 800 Seeks To End King Air's Reign

Whole Aircraft Recovery Parachute Tested for Bye's eFlyer 2 Model

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