FutureFlight
With FAA Authorization, Aska Set To Expand Flight Testing of A5 Flying SUV
The four-seat hybrid-electric vehicle is intended for both personal and commercial flights and will be able operate either vertically from helipads or conventionally from runways.
Aska A5 flying SUV
Aska says it has started flight testing its A5 four-seat hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft. (Image: Aska)

Aska expects to start untethered flight testing of its A5 four-seat eVTOL aircraft during July, having completed several short tethered hover flights in June. The California-based company now holds an FAA certificate of authorization and special airworthiness certification to test its first A5 prototype.

Since the start of 2023, Aska has been conducting ground trials with the A5, including drives on local streets near its Mountain View headquarters and into local airfields from which it is intended to operate in either VTOL or STOL modes. It now hopes to expand flight testing to airports such as Palo Alto and San Jose's Reid Hillview, which the company sees as being typical locations where owner-pilots would operate the hybrid-electric aircraft. The A5 is also intended to be used as a road vehicle to be parked at homes or offices.