Startup AltoVolo has turned heads and generated some skepticism after revealing its design for a 1,608-horsepower, hybrid-electric flying car.
If AltoVolo is able to fulfill its lofty promises, the company's Sigma aircraft could revolutionize not only the nascent electric vertical take-off and landing market, but also human transportation more broadly.
Taking direct aim at the private helicopter industry, AltoVolo said the Sigma would transport up to three passengers over a maximum range of 500 miles, reaching cruise speeds of 220 miles per hour.
AltoVolo also promised that the Sigma, which to date has been tested only in scale prototypes, would be 80% quieter than a helicopter.
Observers of the eVTOL market have acknowledged the revolutionary potential of the Sigma but have taken the unproven announcement with a healthy dose of skepticism.
"That's all well and good, but as we've learned from covering eVTOL companies over the last few years, getting such projects off the ground is not easy by any measure," Abhimanyu Ghoshal, a science and tech commentator, told New Atlas. "So the proof will mostly be in the pudding."
If realized, the Sigma's specs would place it above the current competition, though various startups have designed their eVTOLs to target different markets.
Rather than seeking to displace private helicopter travel, competitors Joby and Archer have targeted the flying taxi market, designing their vehicles around shorter, more frequent trips, per New Atlas.
Advocates of eVTOLs have argued that the vehicles will make ground-based traffic jams a thing of the past, allowing passengers to be whisked rapidly between destinations at hundreds of miles per hour in autonomous flying vehicles.
Further, with eVTOL designs to date incorporating cleaner-energy technology, the vehicles have the potential to vastly reduce the amount of heat-trapping pollution entering the atmosphere.
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Yes 👍 While helicopter travel does not make up a large percentage of transportation-related pollution, it is a particularly inefficient way to get from place to place.
Private jets generate roughly 112 kilograms of carbon dioxide per passenger per hour, while helicopters can produce up to 500 kg per hour total, according to Flights For Their Future.
This means that, depending on the number of passengers, flying by private helicopter can be even worse for the environment than taking a private jet, a notoriously pollution-intensive form of travel.
By comparison, the all-electric flying taxis of Joby and Archer, as well as the hybrid-electric model being pioneered by AltoVolo, would produce only a fraction of the pollution while potentially making travel quicker, safer, quieter, and more convenient.
"The Sigma is a statement of intent, reimagining the way we live and travel on our planet," Will Wood, AltoVolo's founder and CEO, said in the company's announcement. "We are building the fastest point to point transport solution and have already achieved significant breakthroughs to make this happen."
With the company's first full-size demonstrator model still in development, the proof will indeed be in the pudding, as Ghoshal would say.
In the meantime, there is no need to wait for the flying-car revolution to start choosing more environmentally friendly transportation options. By riding a bike, taking public transit, carpooling, or driving an electric vehicle, you can start making a difference today.
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