American Airlines and Virgin Atlantic are looking for much shorter flights to expand their future services, each inking information that could see them by piloting the electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft in the United States and the United Kingdom, respectively. Airlines have been associated with the Vertical Aerospace Startup, which is working on the VA-X4 EVTOL aircraft that can jump vertically in the air and fly for more than 100 miles on a single charge.

Inside, there are seats for four passengers plus a pilot. The VA-X4 has four tilt rotors in the front, which are intended to lift it from the ground, and more, the Rotors shelves on the back for the horizontal flight.

It will be capable, it says vertical aerospace, to fly at speeds to more than 200 mph, with zero emissions and almost silence. While its rank is, obviously, much less than most AA or Virgin Atlantic’s current fleets, the advantage is the flexibility to operate the services in places where traditional aircraft are simply not taken care of. That makes it potentially ideal for the short distance service of the city hopper, the airline has in mind.

For Virgin Atlantic, the goal is to build a network of Evtol flight between the cities of the United Kingdom and airport centers. That will start with London Heathrow, Manchester and London Gatwick, says Virgin Atlantic. A flight from Cambridge to London Heathrow, for example, could be completed in 22 minutes at VA-X4, compared to a typical 90 minute link for the 56-mile trip.

“With 37 cities and cities with populations over 100,000 less than 100 miles from London Heathrow Airport,” the Airline says, the VA-X4 offers great potential to support zero-term emission transfers for 7.7 million From customers outside of London, for flights to and from the main airport in the center of the United Kingdom. “

American Airlines, meanwhile, plans to work on a similar strategy in the United States. And vertical will collaborate in certification, passenger operations and the development of infrastructure.

If there is a problem with the whole plan, that is that right now there is no va-x4. That is, aerospace vertical is building a large-scale prototype, but the first test flight is expected to be carried out until after this year.

Assuming that you go to the plan, and, as with any new plane, there is no guarantee that the current roadmap does not change, then the commercial operations of the VA-X4 are planned for 2024. You will need the aviation authority Federal of the USA UU FAA), the European Aviation Security Agency of the European Union (EASA) and the certification of the Civil Aviation Aviation Authority (CAA) of the United Kingdom before that can happen, of course .

If all the pieces fall into place, Virgin Atlantic has an option to buy 50 to 150 VA-X4 aircraft. The joint venture will be the virgin Atlantic brand, and will focus on the “competitive regional price connectivity” for the first and last 100 miles of the trip of its customers. For example, you can leave a transatlantic flight from the city of New York, and then go directly from a full-size full-size jet to an Evtol airplane to jump until it becomes closer to your home.

Meanwhile, American Airlines, is investing in Vertical, along with Avolon, Honeywell, Rolls-Royce, M12, 40 north and Rocket Internet SE, and has accepted pre-sort up to 250 aircraft with an option to add 100 to order. That will depend on complying with various conditions and milestones. Avolon has accepted pre-order up to 310 VA-X4, with the option for 190.

It is not the first time we have seen Evtol invoiced as the perfect form for passengers (rich) to avoid congestion of the road. It is also a difficult segment to compete, with multiple startups trying such aircraft, and some also closed operations, having discovered how difficult it could be a concept.