Vertical Aerospace Signs Tripartite MoU to Launch Advanced Air Mobility in Saudi Arabia

Vertical Aerospace (NYSE: EVTL) has formally entered into a strategic partnership to develop a comprehensive Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) ecosystem within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. On February 10, 2026, the electric aviation manufacturer signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the AHQ Group, a prominent Saudi industrial conglomerate, and the National Industrial Development Centre (NIDC), a government body operating under the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources.

According to the company’s official announcement, the agreement focuses on localizing the manufacturing of electric aircraft, developing necessary infrastructure, and establishing a regulatory framework for commercial operations. The partners estimate that the Saudi market could eventually support the operation of more than 1,000 of Vertical’s “Valo” aircraft.

Establishing a Regional Ecosystem

The collaboration aims to move beyond simple aircraft sales by creating a localized supply chain and operational base. The MoU outlines a multi-faceted approach to integrating electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technology into the Kingdom’s transport network.

Roles and Responsibilities

Under the terms of the agreement, each party brings specific expertise to the project:

• Vertical Aerospace: Will serve as the technology provider and Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), supplying its piloted electric aircraft.
• AHQ Group: As a long-standing industrial partner in the region, AHQ will evaluate the commercial and industrial infrastructure required for deployment, including vertiports and logistics.
• NIDC: Representing the Saudi government, the NIDC will facilitate the partnership by aligning it with national industrial strategies and identifying investment incentives.

In a statement regarding the partnership, Stuart Simpson, CEO of Vertical Aerospace, emphasized the strategic importance of the region:

“Saudi Arabia is one of the most strategically important future markets for Advanced Air Mobility. Signing this MoU here in Riyadh reflects the Kingdom’s ambition to build a world-class aerospace industrial capability under Vision 2030.”

The “Valo” Aircraft and Localization

The partnership centers on the deployment of the “Valo,” Vertical Aerospace’s flagship piloted eVTOL aircraft. Formerly known as the VX4, the aircraft was officially rebranded in December 2025. The Valo is designed to carry four passengers and one pilot, with a flexible configuration allowing for up to six passengers in future iterations.

According to specifications released by Vertical Aerospace, the Valo offers a range of approximately 100 miles (160 km) and top speeds of roughly 150 mph (240 km/h). Crucially for the Saudi market, the aircraft is engineered to withstand high-temperature environments up to 50°C. The company is currently targeting Type Certification with the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) by 2028.

Tariq Abdel Hadi Al-Qahtani, Chairman of AHQ Group, highlighted the industrial potential of the deal:

“Advanced Air Mobility represents a new frontier for Saudi Arabia’s industrial and mobility ambitions… We see this partnership as an important step in supporting Vision 2030’s goals for diversification, innovation and high-quality job creation.”

Alignment with Vision 2030

This agreement is explicitly tied to Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, the national roadmap for economic diversification and reduced reliance on oil. The MoU prioritizes “manufacturing localization,” suggesting that future phases of the partnership could involve assembling aircraft or battery systems within the Kingdom. This aligns with the Saudi Green Initiative, which seeks to implement zero-emission transport solutions across the country.

AirPro News Analysis

We observe that this move by Vertical Aerospace signals a intensifying competitive landscape for AAM in the Middle East. While the United Arab Emirates (specifically Dubai and Abu Dhabi) has aggressively courted competitors like Joby Aviation and Archer Aviation for early operational launches, Saudi Arabia appears to be focusing heavily on the industrialization aspect of the sector.

By partnering with the NIDC and a major industrial conglomerate like AHQ, Vertical Aerospace is positioning itself not just as a service provider, but as a foundational partner in Saudi Arabia’s industrial base. If the estimate of 1,000 aircraft holds true, this would represent a massive expansion of Vertical’s order book, which currently stands at approximately 1,500 pre-orders globally. However, the timeline for these deployments remains contingent on the 2028 certification target.

Sources

• Vertical Aerospace Press Release

This article is based on an official press release from Natilus.

Natilus Unveils “Horizon Evo” with Dual-Deck Design to Speed FAA Certification

San Diego-based aerospace manufacturer Natilus has officially unveiled the Horizon Evo, a significant evolution of its flagship passenger aircraft. Announced on February 10, 2026, the updated design features a dual-deck configuration intended to address critical regulatory feedback and streamline integration into existing airline fleets. Alongside the design update, the company confirmed it has secured $28 million in Series A funding led by Draper Associates.

The announcement marks a strategic pivot for the Blended Wing Body (BWB) developer. By moving away from a single-volume fuselage to a split-level layout, Natilus aims to solve two of the most persistent challenges facing BWB adoption: emergency passenger evacuation and compatibility with standard airport cargo infrastructure.

A Strategic Pivot: The Dual-Deck Configuration

According to the company’s press release, the Horizon Evo introduces a distinct separation between passenger and cargo operations. The aircraft will feature an upper deck dedicated to approximately 200 passengers and a lower deck designed specifically to accommodate standard LD3-45 shipping containers.

This design change is a direct response to feedback from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and commercial Airlines partners. In previous BWB concepts, the deep, wide fuselage created significant hurdles for emergency egress, as passengers seated in the center of the aircraft were too far from exits to meet the 90-second evacuation standard. The new dual-deck layout mimics the cross-section of traditional widebody jets, allowing for standard door heights and evacuation procedures.

Natilus CEO Aleksey Matyushev emphasized the pragmatic nature of this shift in a statement regarding the launch:

“By moving into this dual-deck layout, it pushes us into a more traditional, I would say known, operational capability that the FAA is more comfortable with.”

Infrastructure Compatibility

Beyond safety certification, the redesign addresses operational logistics. Airlines have long expressed concern that radical new airframe shapes would require expensive modifications to ground support equipment. By standardizing the lower deck for LD3 containers, Natilus claims the Horizon Evo can be serviced by existing cargo loaders without modification, removing a major barrier to entry for commercial carriers.

Technical Specifications and Performance Claims

Natilus positions the Horizon Evo as a hyper-efficient alternative to the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A321neo. While the aircraft retains the aerodynamic benefits of a blended wing, the company states it will offer significant environmental and economic advantages over current “tube-and-wing” designs.

Key specifications released by the company include:

• Capacity: Approximately 200 passengers in a two-class configuration, up to 250 in a single-class layout.
• Range: Capable of transcontinental and transatlantic routes (e.g., New York to London).
• Efficiency: Projected 30% reduction in fuel burn and 50% lower emissions per seat compared to traditional narrowbodies.
• Cargo Volume: 40% more payload volume than comparable aircraft.
• Propulsion: Designed for compatibility with existing engine types (such as the CFM LEAP or PW1000G) to minimize technical risk.

The aircraft is designed to fit within Gate Class C4, ensuring it can utilize existing Airports gates without requiring infrastructure expansion.

Timeline and Funding

The company’s roadmap outlines a staggered approach to entry into service. Natilus plans to fly its smaller cargo drone prototype, the Kona, within approximately 24 months (late 2027 or early 2028). The Kona is pursuing FAA Part 23 certification.

The passenger-focused Horizon Evo, which will require more rigorous FAA Part 25 certification, is targeted for commercial service in the early 2030s. The newly secured $28 million in Series A funding will support the next phase of development, including wind tunnel testing and sub-scale prototyping.

AirPro News Analysis

Pragmatism over Perfection

The shift to the Horizon Evo represents a “reality check” for the blended wing body sector. While pure flying wings offer maximum theoretical aerodynamic efficiency, they have historically failed to cross the “Valley of Death” toward certification due to safety and infrastructure incompatibilities. By compromising on a dual-deck design, Natilus is signaling to investors and regulators that it prioritizes a certifiable product over a theoretically perfect one.

However, significant hurdles remain. The $28 million raised is a fraction of the capital required to certify a clean-sheet commercial airliner, a process that typically costs between $1 billion and $5 billion. For context, competitor JetZero recently received $235 million from the U.S. Air Force for a demonstrator alone. While the dual-deck design mitigates evacuation risks, proving that a non-tubular fuselage can meet strict safety standards remains a massive engineering challenge. The “early 2030s” timeline is ambitious, and industry observers will be watching closely to see if the company can secure the substantial follow-on funding needed to move from wind tunnels to flight tests.

Sources

• Natilus Press Release

This article is based on an official press release from H55.

H55 Completes Aviation Industry’s First EASA-Required Battery Certification Tests

H55, the Swiss electric aviation company spun off from the Solar Impulse project, announced it has successfully completed the full sequence of propulsion battery module certification tests required by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). The milestone, achieved on December 19, 2025, marks a significant step forward for the sector, addressing the critical safety challenge of thermal runaway containment in high-energy lithium-ion batteries.

According to the company, this is the first time in the aviation industry that a propulsion battery module has passed these rigorous, authority-witnessed tests using serial-conforming hardware. The successful campaign clears the path for H55 to submit final test reports to EASA in the first quarter of 2026, with commercial entry-into-service projected for early 2027.

Solving the Thermal Runaway Challenge

The primary hurdle for certifying electric-aviation has long been the safety of high-energy density batteries. Regulators require proof that if a single cell catches fire (a process known as thermal runaway), the failure will not propagate to neighboring cells or cause a catastrophic explosion. H55 reports that its “Adagio” battery module successfully demonstrated this containment capability under EASA supervision.

Instead of relying on heavy containment boxes, which add prohibitive weight to airframes, H55 utilizes a patented encapsulation technology. This system manages each cell individually, directing released energy and hot gases out of the module through a specific venting path. This approach prevents heat from triggering adjacent cells, effectively neutralizing the risk of propagation.

“Electric aviation has faced a single, unresolved bottleneck: proving to regulators that high-energy propulsion batteries can safely contain worst-case failures. Rather than attempting to contain a thermal runaway by shielding… H55 opts for a different approach, preventing fire propagation at the cell level.”

, André Borschberg, Co-Founder of H55

Technical Specifications and Production Readiness

The tests were conducted on H55’s Adagio battery modules, which utilize commercial 21700 lithium-ion cells, a standard cylindrical format adapted for aviation safety. The company states the modules achieve an energy density of approximately 200 Wh/kg. Crucially, the tests utilized production-grade units rather than experimental prototypes, signaling that H55’s manufacturing lines in Sion, Switzerland, are ready for mass production.

In addition to the physical battery architecture, the system includes a redundant Battery Management System (BMS) capable of monitoring the voltage, temperature, and health of every single cell in real-time.

AirPro News analysis

While major eVTOL developers like Joby Aviation and Beta Technologies have made significant progress with flight testing, much of the industry has operated under experimental permits or is currently navigating the earlier stages of certification. H55’s completion of the specific battery module test sequence positions it as a critical supplier for airframers who prefer to integrate certified components rather than developing proprietary battery systems. Furthermore, the move from theoretical safety models to empirical, regulator-witnessed data is expected to assist insurers in transitioning from estimated risk models to actuarial data, potentially lowering premiums for electric fleets.

Regulatory Pathway and North American Expansion

H55 holds both Design Organization Approval (DOA) and Production Organization Approval (POA) from EASA. The company is currently working with a joint Certification Management Team involving EASA and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Under mutual recognition agreements, the data generated from the EASA tests is intended to support “fast-track” approval for operations in North America.

To demonstrate the technology’s reliability to the North American market, H55 has announced an “Across America” tour for 2025. The company will fly its Bristell B23 Energic, a two-seater electric trainer aircraft equipped with the Adagio system, across the United States to engage with flight schools and operators.

H55 is also establishing a new production facility in Montreal, Canada, to serve customers in the region.

Sources

Sources: PR Newswire / H55