Next Stop, The Clouds: Vertical and Bristow Chart a New Course for City Commuting

 

Vertical Aerospace and Bristow Group have unveiled a historic expansion of their strategic partnership that will result in the rapid commercial operation of electric air taxi services globally. The historic deal is designed to introduce urban air mobility by marrying Vertical's cutting-edge VX4 eVTOL aircraft with Bristow's four decades of operating experience.

 

Key Highlights:

 

Extended Partnership: Electric flight pioneer Vertical Aerospace and the leading global helicopter company, Bristow Group, are expanding their partnership to accelerate the deployment of commercial air taxi flights with the long-term vision of a scalable, global launch.

 

Large Aircraft Order: Bristow has pre-purchased up to 50 VX4 eVTOL aircraft with options on an additional 50, demonstrating strong confidence in Vertical's tech and business strategy.

 

"Ready-to-Fly" Turnkey Solution: The partnership will deliver a capital-light full-service operations solution to VX4 customers, including certified aircraft, trained pilots, maintenance, and insurance—removing the need for customers to develop their own operational infrastructure.

 

Reducing Barriers to Operators: Airlines, logistics operators, and rescue operators can easily incorporate eVTOL operations, with a focus on customer experience while Vertical and Bristow take care of the technical and operational aspects.

 

Global Reach and Experience: Bristow will draw upon its global reach and 75+ years of logistics and safety expertise to deliver managed operations across several continents.

 

Technology Milestones: Vertical entered history with the world's initial wingborne, winged eVTOL flight in open European airspace, a crucial milestone on the journey toward certification and commercialization.

 

Future Developments: The firms are exploring new maintenance technologies such as battery swapping and prescriptive fleet management, while Vertical is engineering a hybrid-electric VX4 version for improved range and versatility.

Market Impact: The partnership puts both companies at the forefront of the emerging advanced air mobility sector, with investors boosting price targets and forecasting profitability for Vertical Aerospace this year.

 

This strategic partnership is all about delivery and is something that already successfully happens in aviation today. It will reduce barriers to market entry and accelerate the adoption of eVTOL services around the world.

 

— Stuart Simpson, CEO of Vertical Aerospace 

 

Source: Reuters, BusinessWire, Yahoo Finance, Investing.com, Global Banking & Finance Review