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TriFan 600 - the first urban aircraft

TriFan 600 - the first urban aircraft
This is a vertical takeoff aircraft, developed and built by the American company XTI Aircraft. The device itself was invented and proposed by Dzvid Brody (2012). It was he who assembled a team that included such well-known experts as the former head of Sikorsky Aircraft, Jeff Pino, and former Cessna president Charlie Johnson. Since 2015, the idea of ​​a hybrid aircraft that combines the advantages of a helicopter and an aircraft powered by batteries and internal combustion engines has begun to be implemented.


The fundraising campaign was launched in 2015, and quite successfully: the project was supported all over the world - in less than 2 months, 10 million dollars were invested in the idea. By the end of the year, the media started talking about the plane and the amount increased to 17 million "green". The assembly of the prototype began in 2017 at the Placerville Airport in California. The scale was chosen at 65%. Initially, only the battery pack was used. Electric motors and related equipment were supplied by the Czech company MGM Compro (Zlin). The construction of a reduced prototype was completed by the beginning of 2019, when the aircraft was first presented to the general public.

The ideological inspirer of the project, Brody, initially tried to enlist the support of the military, offering them a variant of his offspring in the form of AVX Aircraft. However, the latter preferred to choose large companies (Bell Helicopter, Sikorsky-Boeing), which develop such devices as the X2 “super helicopter” and the V-280 tiltrotor.


TriFan 600 – первый городской самолетTriFan 600 will take off from the roofs of skyscrapers. Photo: YouTube.com


Today, XTI Aircraft and Xeriant, GE Aviation are participating in the project. The engineers of the latter are busy developing a catalytic engine, which should provide energy to the generators.

What is TriFan 600


By design, it is a longitudinal biplane with hybrid engines and vertical takeoff, landing (VTOL) capability. The fuselage is made of composites, including carbon fiber. The power unit is made in the form of three impeller electric motors (duct fans in the outer “edging”) and one turboshaft type motor that develops 999 “horses” (generates electricity for three generators). Such units are, for example, on the Eurocopter EC 135 (Arrius 2B2), Eurocopter BK 117 (Arriel 1E2) helicopters. However, later preference was given to the Catalyst turboprop engine in order to reduce the mass of the structure.

When taking off, the TriFan 600 engines look up. Photo: YouTube.com


If the catalytic engine is “brought to mind”, then it is possible that Textron will be the first to put it on its aircraft. Now she is almost finishing work on the creation of a turboprop single-engine aircraft Cessna Denali (later called Beechcraft Denali). Its tests with the Catalyst engine were carried out in November last year and were recognized as successful: it remains to be certified.


In the future, they plan to switch to a motor powered by hydrogen elements. There is also an idea to equip the aircraft with solar panels so that the batteries are recharged while the device is in the parking lot. Externally, the TriFan 600 is an ordinary aircraft with "classic" wings and tail.

What is the TriFan 600 for?


The main purpose is business class passenger transportation. The plane should become the city's "air taxi". There is also a small cargo compartment inside.

The interior of the aircraft speaks of its attitude to the business class. Photo: YouTube.com


It is possible that rescue services and medical institutions will be interested in the aircraft. Wealthy citizens will be able to use the aircraft as a personal vehicle.

How to take off, move and land


The device is able to take to the sky from any flat area, intended, for example, for helicopters (the roof of a skyscraper is also suitable). If it is necessary to take off, a pair of impellers mounted in the wings are in a horizontal form. Exactly the same position is occupied (cannot be changed) by the third duct fan mounted in the rear part of the fuselage.

The idea of ​​installing an aircraft engine in an aircraft body is not new. For example, in the F-35, the “rear” engine also works only during takeoff and landing. Even earlier, a similar scheme was used in the experimental Soviet Yak-141.


After reaching the desired height, a pair of impellers placed in the wings are smoothly and gradually transferred to a vertical position so that the aircraft gains cruising speed and the optimum altitude for flight.

After takeoff, the impellers smoothly move to a vertical position. Photo: YouTube.com


In this case, the fixed third duct fan, located in the aircraft body, is covered with a skin to reduce the resistance to air flow. After 1,5 minutes, the device picks up cruising speed, and the climb to the optimal altitude ends after 11 minutes. Technical parameters (in different sources may vary slightly):

✅ wingspan - 11,5 m
✅ power unit - Honeywell HTS900 in 999 "horses" (later - Catalyst) and 3 electric motors with a capacity of 350 hp each. With.
✅ top speed - 630 km/h
✅ range - up to 2200 km
✅ number of passengers - 5 (according to other sources up to 9) people
✅ maximum height - 8,8 km

The batteries are used in series with the internal combustion engine. The latter generates electricity, which is needed to supply energy to the motors during horizontal movement (then the batteries are turned off and work during takeoff and landing).

For 2022, the media notes that the TriFan 600 claims the "title" of the most "long-range" and fastest VTOL hybrid aircraft.


Equipment and routes


The head of XTI, Robert LaBelle, claims that software is being installed on the aircraft that reduces the workload on pilots. Most of the operations are performed by the autopilot. The flight will be carried out exclusively on a point-to-point basis - along a route that is approved by US aviation regulators. According to XTI calculations, the TriFan 600 produces 40% less harmful emissions into the atmosphere, is half as quiet, and costs 50% less in terms of maintenance when compared to conventional aircraft.

Test


From the beginning of 2019 until May, the prototype was tested on the ground and in hover mode with anchoring (in total, the engines worked 1100 hours). Battery systems and engine controls were tested. Over the next six months, an independent take-off without anchor and a transition to direct movement will be made. The second stage of testing is planned to be carried out at a test site owned by Deseret UAS in Utah.

The plane may be of interest to rescuers. Photo: YouTube.com


The TriFan 600 has not yet been certified, is not mass-produced, and the development of its cargo version, the Trifan 200 unmanned aerial vehicle, is already in full swing. .

State of affairs today


At the moment, work is underway on a prototype aircraft. It is stated that the certification of the aircraft will take place in 2022-2023. At the end of 2024, it is already planned to launch the car into mass production. They want to register the device as an aircraft through the FAA (American Civil Aviation Administration). According to information from XTI Aircraft, as of June last year, there were 200 pre-orders for the aircraft. The TriFan 600 is expected to start at $6,5 million. According to other sources, the price of the aircraft is in the range of 10-12 million "green" and depends on the configuration - for example, interior equipment.

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Photos used: https://youtube.com

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