Horizon Aircraft on January 4 announced it has completed initial hover testing of its Cavorite X5 scale prototype, a hybrid electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft.

“This aircraft has exceeded expectations during initial hover testing,” said Brandon Robinson, CEO of Horizon Aircraft. “It is extremely stable, is capable of full hover at only 65 per cent power, and has hovered with 20 per cent of its fans purposely disabled in order to test system redundancy.”

Robinson continues to explain the Cavorite X5 prototype is a large-scale eVTOL aircraft, with a 22-foot wingspan, measuring more than 15 feet in length, and capable of speeds over 175 mph. “It continues to yield valuable data that is constantly improving our full-scale design,” he said.

Horizon explains its patented eVTOL concept allows the aircraft to fly 98 per cent of its mission in a very low-drag configuration like a traditional aircraft and is one of the only eVTOL aircraft currently able to do so. The company continues to explain that flying most of the mission as a normal aircraft is safer, more efficient, and will be easier to certify than radical new eVTOL designs.

Horizon’s full-scale aircraft will be powered by a hybrid electric system that can recharge the battery array in-flight while providing additional system redundancy.

Co-founded by CEO Brandon Robinson and Chief Engineer Brian Robinson, with its primary production facility located in Lindsay, Ontario, Horizon Aircraft plans to move to transition flight testing in the first quarter of 2023 at the ACE Climatic Wind Tunnel located near Toronto.

(Photos: Horizon Aircraft)