VAI
CONVENTION NEWS MARCH 10, 2026
DAY 1
AINONLINE.COM SUSTAINABILITY Hybrid propulsion Pratt & Whitney Canada says PioneerLab hybridelectric demonstrator on track to fly in 2027 | 4
NEW AIRCRAFT MD 564 coming 2028
MARIANO ROSALES
Newest iteration will have six main rotor blades | 2
VIP CABIN ACH140 launch
A mockup of the four-passenger Eve100 vehicle makes its Verticon debut.
EVE TEASES EVTOL ERA By Charles Alcock Eve Air Mobility is displaying a full-scale mockup of its Eve100 eVTOL this week at Verticon 2026 as part of its efforts to build the advanced air mobility business case among helicopter operators—and in the U.S. market in particular. Eve has signed sales commitments for more than 2,700 of the all-electric, four-passenger model, including agreements with U.S. airlines United and Republic. Its prospective customer base also includes Revo, a subsidiary of Omni Helicopters International, and Japanese air charter broker AirX, which is eager to offer alternatives to existing helicopters. According to Eve chief commercial officer Megha Bhatia, the Embraer spinoff is increasingly engaging with the helicopter sector. She told AIN that reduced carbon and noise emissions are part of the value proposition for eVTOLs versus helicopters. Bhatia added that the company aims to “unlock the limitations that are applied to low-altitude flying today.”
Brazil’s Helisul Aviation signed a provisional sales agreement in 2021 for up to 50 of Eve’s lift-and-cruise aircraft, which has since been extensively redesigned. That operator is interested in sightseeing flights, while U.S.-based Helicopters Inc. has signed a letter of intent covering 50 Eve aircraft for last-mile flights. In mid-December, Eve started test flights with a fullscale engineering prototype and confirmed it will build six conforming prototypes for a certification process it aims to complete with Brazil’s ANAC agency in 2027. To date, the company has conducted 28 flights with the uncrewed demonstrator, accumulating 106 minutes of flight time. According to Bhatia, Eve aims to increase test flights to an almost daily routine this year and will expand the flight envelope to wingborne operations. The demonstrator aircraft features Beta Technologies lifter rotors, while the production aircraft will use Nidec lifters and a pusher procontinues on page 22 pulsion unit provided by Beta.
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INDUSTRY EVOLVES Inflection point VAI president and CEO François Lassale welcomes AAM | 19
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