Aircraft
Electric Aircraft Vie for Attention at Paris Air Show
Beta's Alia CX300 aircraft is expected to turn heads with its flying display
Beta Technologies Alia CX300 electric aircraft
Beta Technologies' Alia CX300 electric aircraft is at the Paris Air Show en route to Norway where it will be delivered to launch customer Bristow. © AIN/Charles Alcock

Electric aviation pioneers are back on the Paris Air Show stage, vying for attention from prospective customers and, no less importantly, investors. Much has transpired in the advanced air mobility (AAM) sector since the last biennial airshow at Le Bourget, not least among eVTOL aircraft developers but also with efforts to reinvent regional air services with electric and hybrid-electric airplanes coming to the fore.

Two years ago, Volocopter made headlines at the Paris show as it mapped out how it intended to have its two-seat VoloCity eVTOL vehicle certified by EASA in time to operate flights during the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. That proved to be unrealistic, and by the end of last year the German company was fighting to escape from insolvency before being rescued by the Chinese owners of Austria-based Diamond Aviation.