Textron eAviation will conduct flight testing of the full-scale technology demonstrator for its Nexus eVTOL aircraft at Salina Regional Airport in Kansas. The manufacturer announced on October 7 that this part of the planned flight test program will follow initial tethered flight testing due to begin in 2025 at the National Institute of Aviation Research in Wichita.

The advanced air mobility industry is facing an increasingly challenging funding environment amid an ongoing decline in venture capital for novel aircraft and propulsion technologies—particularly in the eVTOL sector, according to a report from global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company. In a recent blog post, McKinsey consultants spell out the implications of the current funding environment and offer strategic advice for companies looking to “close the funding gap” as they near commercialization.

Sea Cheetah Corporation is completing construction of a technology demonstrator for the hydrogen-electric wing-in-ground-effect vessel it is developing for multiple roles including passenger and cargo operations. The Miami-based start-up said it aims to get the vessel approved under International Maritime Organization requirements in time for first deliveries to be made in the final quarter of 2026.

The annual UP.Summit event held last week by venture capital firm UP.Partners, in partnership with Steuart Walton and Ross Perot Jr., welcomed innovation leaders to Louise Thaden Field in Bentonville, Arkansas, for three days of learning about mobility technology and to try out airplanes, electric cars and bicycles, and simulators for advanced new aircraft. 

The Skyryse One, a Robinson R66 helicopter modified with fly-by-wire flight controls and a single-control user interface, has received a special airworthiness certificate from the FAA. The certificate is another step toward supplemental type certification of the Skyryse One and facilitates further flight testing on the way to planned FAA approval next year. 

Dubai public car parking group Parkin has announced plans to develop parking facilities at new vertiports to be used for eVTOL air services with Skyports Infrastructure. On October 3, the companies signed a memorandum of understanding that they said will contribute to Skyports’ existing partnership with Joby Aviation and Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority to launch commercial air taxi flights in 2026.

Uncrewed aircraft operator Areion UAS has agreed to proceed with plans to buy at least 40 of Dufour Aerospace’s Aero2 hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft. The agreement, announced on September 30 during the UP.Summit event in Bentonville, Arkansas, marks the renewal of an existing partnership between the Swiss manufacturer and U.S.-based Spright, which was acquired by Areion’s parent company Legionair Tactical Logistics on September 1.