Vertical Aerospace’s eVTOL Aircraft Nears First Full Transition Flight | Aviation International News

Vertical Aerospace’s eVTOL Aircraft Nears First Full Transition Flight

Phase 3 of flight testing with a full-scale VX4 prototype is now complete

Vertical Aerospace VX4 eVTOL aircraft — Vertical continues to expand the flight envelope in tests with its VX4 eVTOL aircraft. © Vertical Aerospace

By Charles Alcock • Managing Editor

September 9, 2025

Vertical Aerospace says it is getting close to achieving a full wingborne transition from vertical to horizontal flight with its VX4 eVTOL prototype. On September 9, the UK company reported it had completed Phase 3 of testing, which demonstrated “stable and efficient flight on the wing.”

In flights that started in May from Vertical’s test base at Cotswold Airport in southern England, the full-scale VX4 has repeatedly taken off, flown, and landed with lift generated by its wings, covering distances of up to around 217 nm. The flights have gathered more than 22 billion data points for the engineering team, with the aircraft logging a top speed of 120 knots and an altitude of 2,000 feet.

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