At CES 2019 in Las Vegas, Bell revealed the latest flying taxi concept its Nexus VTOL Aircraft which is being developed as a preferred platform for Uber Elevate Air taxi program.
The Bell Nexus Looks like an oversized drone but it is much more. The Aircraft weighs at 6500 pounds with 8 articulated ducted fans which enable the platform to lift off the ground in a vertical 90 degrees just like a helicopter. Landing is as easy as rotating the fans back into their original position and setting down gently.
Best of all, the Nexus fits on a standard 40-foot by 40-foot landing pad, which means that cities won't have to radically change existing infrastructure to accommodate them. And since the Nexus utilizes a hybrid electric power system, it should be able to fly more quietly and more efficiently than conventional 'copters.
As per Bell, the aircraft has a capacity of 4 passengers and a pilot with a range of 150 miles and can travel this distance in just one hour. Bell is working with a number of other companies on the Nexus, including Safran, EPS, Thales, Moog, and Garmin -- each of whom is building individual subsystems.
The company expects to begin test flights from 2023 and commence commercial rollout soon after that. Both Uber and Bell will need to convince the public that the air taxi service they have in mind isn't just convenient but reliable, cost-effective -- and most importantly, safe.
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