BackIIT-incubated ePlane readies an electric taxi for the skies
The Chennai-based deeptech startup , with around 70 employees, is part of Kerala Startup Mission and incubated at IIT-M
PremiumAlmost six decades after the Jetsons predicted a world of flying cars and homes in the sky in the Hanna-Barbera animated TV series, India may finally be gearing up for flying passenger taxis.
Satya Chakravarthy, a professor at the aerospace department in the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, and the co-founder and chief technology officer, ePlane Co., expects to launch unmanned drones and a two-seater electric plane and ferry cargo in the next two years. Chakravarthy hopes to join the ranks of global air-taxi startups like Slovenia’s Pipistrel, UK’s Vertical Aerospace and Skyfall, Germany’s Volocopter, Sweden’s Jetson Aero, US-based ASKA and Joby Aviation and China’s EHang.
ePlane Co, owned and operated by Ubifly Technologies Pvt. Ltd, was founded in 2017 and launched in 2019 by Chakravarthy and his student Pranjal Mehta. The Chennai-based deeptech startup , with around 70 employees, is part of Kerala Startup Mission and incubated at IIT-M. It is developing an electric-flying taxi to ferry passengers within city limits “at 2-2.5 times the cost of a regular taxi fare", said Chakravarthy.
The electrical vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle could land on terraces of parking decks, dedicated spaces in malls, and other public places, he added. “They (landing stations for eVTOLs) will be classified as new helipads. As we increase the number of planes and landing sites, and the network becomes bigger and bigger, we can probably get this differential (cost) down to about 1.5 times. We believe the market is ready, and there are enough people who will be willing to pay for a 10x reduction in travel time." ePlane has designed three UAV or unmanned aerial vehicle models—the e6, e50 and e200. While the e6 has been designed to deliver packages weighing up to 6 kg, it can also be used for long-range surveillance. e50 is India’s first drone equipped with VTOL capabilities, and designed to carry up to a 50-kg payload. “Currently testing is underway. The team is gearing up for untethered tests very soon," Chakravarthy said. The all-electric flying taxi, or e200, is the flagship product— designed to transport passenger and cargo 10x faster.
Chakravarthy said ePlane can “optimistically do it (commercially launch the e200) in the first half of 2025 but realistically, it will be able to launch commercially by the second half". “I have to perform a battery of tests including ground tests before I can get the certification to commercialize the operations." Getting an Indian certification to fly drones and e-planes, is not easy, he added.
To begin with, drone rules in India allow for up to 500 kg of weight of an aircraft to be classified as a drone. “Hence, technically, the cargo variant (unmanned variant) maybe classified as a drone. But the configuration is pretty much the same for passenger electric planes and cargo drones since both are VTOLs, but the plane has wings and a front tail, too, and will carry passengers. So, this version will actually come under aircraft rules, and the certification has to come from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation," Chakravarthy explained. ePlane also has to conceptualize the “flight paths from point A to point B, and we are developing an (machine learning) algorithm for it".
But why an electric plane? “The answer is very simple. It’s about cost. In the future, we should opt for larger electric planes. The main reason is its asset cost, maintenance cost, and operating cost. The disadvantage is you still have fairly short ranges to live with. We have targeted 200 km per single charge. There are others who are targeting 300 km and more," Chakravarthy said. The e200 can fly at a cruise speed of 160 km per hour.
But what about safety, given reports that EV batteries can explode? “We just don’t have a choice: We must follow safety regulations to be certified."
Chakravarthy currently is exploring a couple of business models. The first is to allow wealthy users to buy the e200. “Those who can afford may want to own the air taxi but they will require the necessary permissions from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and a pilot’s license," he said. He is also contemplating running the air taxi as a service. “We have not exactly figured out because it’s a bit too early for us right now but we plan to do so in the next few months," he added.
Chakravarthy was, however, noncommital on whether ePlane would also manufacture eVTOLs. “Manufacturing is all about setting up an assembly line. At this point, we know how to do prototyping, testing, and certification. But I also want to do operations, which I’ve never done before. As for manufacturing, we will look for partners. We are just beginning to talk to them," he said.
ePlane also plans to raise more money. The startup raised $1 million in a seed round of funding in March 2021. On 10 January 2022, ePlane announced a $5 million pre-Series A round of funds to help it “hire talent, advance research and development (R&D), and initiate certification". The investment was led by deeptech venture capitalist Speciale Invest and EV/Climate focussed fund Micelio. A consortium of investors including Naval Ravikant, 3one4 Capital, UTEC (University of Tokyo Edge Capital), Anicut Capital, Infoedge, Prashant Pitti (co-founder of Easemytrip), Thought Ventures, Java Capital, and Firstcheque.vc participated in the round. “We seek to raise additional $5-10 million in a Series A round," said Chakravarthy, adding that “existing investors may put in some money too".
Going forward, Chakravarthy is planning to launch a three-seater eVTOL too, since he wants to build an “air ambulance" that can seat three passengers -- a patient, pilot and paramedic. “It is definitely challenging but there’s a good chance for us to showcase how we manage to pull this off," Chakravarthy concluded.
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