South African aerostructures and aircraft equipment manufacturer Aerosud Aviation has started collaborating with Samad Aerospace in the development of its Starling Cargo eVTOL vehicle as it assesses whether to become a risk-sharing partner in the program. UK-based Samad has not specified which parts its new partner will make for the remotely piloted aircraft, but the company told FutureFlight that Pretoria-based Aerosud could potentially assemble complete aircraft if sufficient demand exists for it in the African market.
Samad is already testing a full-scale prototype of the freight-carrying eVTOL and intends to build a production prototype in 2022 and have it certified by 2023. According to the company’s CEO and founder, Seyed Mohseni, the aircraft will likely start commercial services flights over uninhabited land or sea before Samad seeks approval for operations in and around cities.
