Wisk Aero completes public demonstration flight of Cora eVTOL aircraft

Wisk Aero (Mountain View, Calif., U.S.) has successfully completed the first public demonstration flight of its fifth generation, fully autonomous, electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL), fixed-wing demonstrator aircraft, Cora. The milestone flight took place at EAA AirVenture, an annual airshow and gathering, based in Oshkosh, Wis., U.S.

Wisk completed a multi-transition flight, during which the air taxi transitioned from hover to wing-borne flight four times. The flight also included multiple maneuvers that demonstrated the aircraft’s capabilities, such as hover, 360-degree turns in place and more. Video footage of the flight can be found on Wisk’s YouTube channel.

“We’re proud to demonstrate the autonomous technology behind our self-flying first approach,” Brian Yutko, CEO of Wisk, says. “This demonstration showcases the state of readiness for autonomous technology and electric propulsion. Combined with the progress we’re making on type certification for our sixth generation air taxi, we’re proving that autonomy is possible and it’s happening today. We look forward to launching the first passenger service on an all-electric, autonomous air taxi within this decade.”

Wisk’s public demonstration flight adds to the company’s aviation history, including the full transition of its first generation eVTOL aircraft, piloted flight of a fly-by-wire, all-electric, human-rated aircraft (second generation air taxi, 2015) and piloted full transition flight of a human-rated eVTOL aircraft (third generation air taxi, 2017).