Aircraft
Textron's eVTOL Aircraft Plans Are Still In the Balance
Textron confirmed that its Nexus eVTOL is a technology testbed, rather than an active program as it continues to assess its advanced air mobility options.
Bell's Nexus eVTOL was expected to carry four or five passengers up to around 60 miles at speeds of 150 mph. (Image: Bell)
Bell's Nexus eVTOL was expected to carry four or five passengers up to around 60 miles at speeds of 150 mph. (Image: Bell)

While Textron still clearly harbors strong ambitions in the electric aviation and wider advanced air mobility sector, the U.S. aerospace group has all but confirmed that its Bell business’s long-awaited Nexus eVTOL aircraft will not be its first product in this market, at least not in its current iteration. In a November 24 interview with FutureFlight, Rob Scholl, the senior Textron executive appointed nine months ago to lead its eAviation team, acknowledged that Nexus is not an active program and said that the company will not confirm plans to bring a passenger-carrying eVTOL model to market until it confirms a business case for doing so.