On Monday, April 29, 2019, the Vertical Flight Society hosted a panel at the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) XPONENTIAL 2019 trade show, with some 200 attendees.
This special interactive panel featured innovation leaders from Aurora, Bell, Sikorsky and NASA, as well as investment companies NEXA Capital and Starburst Accelerator discussing how autonomy, electric propulsion and other critical technologies are enabling an electric VTOL revolution of urban air mobility. The panel focused on large autonomous VTOL platforms for passenger and cargo applications. Briefing slides are available for several of the presenters.
Autonomous Flight for Tomorrow — Technology & Market Drivers for Urban VTOL
Moderator: Graham Warwick, Technology Managing Editor for Aviation Week & Space Technology
Brian Yutko, Aurora Flight Sciences
- Scott Drennan, Bell Innovations
- Jonathan Hartman, Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company
- Davis Hackenberg, NASA Urban Air Mobility (UAM) Grand Challenge
- Michael Dyment, NEXA Capital
- Van Espahbodi, Starburst Aerospace Accelerator
VFS members Barbara Lindauer (Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Co.) and Ajay Sehgal (KBRwyle) organized the panel.