SEPTEMBER, 1ST 2015 Various urban air transport aircraft have been proposed in recent years, and none of them works very well due to the complexities of working in an urban environment. The XTI Aircraft, an American company, based in Colorado wants to change it all. They have recently launched an ambitious Kickstarter campaign to fund the production of a new urban transport jet that can take off like a helicopter.

The total money required by the company is just 50 million dollars and the maximum amount of money raised by any project at Kickstarter is 20 million dollars. So it will have to be quite a campaign to raise that kind of funding. The plane can carry around six passengers and fly as fast as regular business jets nowadays. The obvious target market is the business community. It would be even harder to get the kind of funds they need because this community is always skeptical of these of these ideas and investing in them through crowdfunding.
XTI VTOL aircraft2

How Does it works ? 

Using three ducted fans, the TriFan 600 lifts off vertically and in seconds the two wing fans rotate forward for a seamless transition to high-speed flight. Within just 90 seconds, the airplane reaches cruise speed – where the lift is provided by the wings just like every other fixed-wing airplane. The fuselage-mounted fan, no longer needed, closes up. The airplane flies directly to its destination and reverses the process. Landing vertically right where it needs to be – wherever there’s a clear helipad-sized paved surface.

The Facts 

• MAX CRUISE SPEED ~340 kts (400mph)
• MAX CRUISE ALTITUDE – Over 30,000 feet above predominant weather
• RANGE- 800 – 1,200 miles*
• VERTICAL LIFT –  3 ducted fans
• ENGINE UP – 2,600 shaft horsepower range
• FLIGHT CONTROL- Fly-by-wire
• TIME TO MAX ALTITUDE – 11 minutes
• TIME TO MAX CRUISE SPEED – 90 seconds

We have seen this type of aerospace designs in many movies like the Avatar so, it doesn’t surprise many from the outside, but it should. It is very difficult to come up with an actual working model. The thrust is provided by three ducted fans, one in the tail, and other two on the wings. The wing fans can rotate 90 degrees to enable high-speed flight once the aircraft is good to go. It has been Named Tri-fan 600 for this arrangement.

Back view

According to XTI, the concept arose soon after the formation in 2009. David Brody, ex-Ceo of AVX Aircraft Co. was at the forefront of the whole process. Soon enough he was able to gather more influential people in the industry to work for his cause. The company has high hopes of achieving its target despite the odds against their project. They are of the opinion that aviation leaders will all come forward to make this aircraft a reality as they are branding it as a “kitty hawk” moment for the business transportation.
XTI VTOL aircraft

Tri-Fan if it becomes reality is going to be the first long-range, high-speed Vertical Take-off, and Landing commercial aircraft. It can fly as fast as business jets, but it can also land with ease on any helipad sized surfaces. It has a seamless transition from vertical to normal flight, and this might be the most significant achievement of the company. This tech has faced several problems over the years including the famous F-35 fighter project. The company also claims a maximum speed of 400 mph and a maximum range of 1000-1200 miles.
The aircraft would be further developed over the course of next two years with particular focus given to existing proven technologies. Several financing milestones lie in the process of its fulfillment and XTI is hopeful they will resolve them soon enough.

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