April 3, 2020
A manufacturer in the urban air mobility (UAM) arena has joined in the aviation community’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, even as the company continues its work to bring its pioneering transport vehicle to market.
A team member with Burlington, VT-based Beta Technologies – producer of a winged, electric-powered vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft – announced that one of its team members is spearheading a partnership with the University of Vermont Medical Center and other state businesses and institutions to create an innovative, reusable N95 personal protective equipment mask for frontline COVID-19 medical personnel and others.
The project is being led by engineer and entrepreneur Steve Ames; Beta reports the company is also developing “an automated emergency-use smart ventilator” to assist critical-care patients infected with the respiratory virus.
The humanitarian initiatives were detailed in a recent profile in WIRED magazine, which also outlines Beta’s continuing efforts to develop a single-platform vertiport and charging station, not just for its own planned winged electric-powered vertical takeoff and landing eVTOL aircraft, but also for other UAM and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).
“Beta’s focus on lending a helping hand in this time of crisis, even as the company works to build a pioneering air-transport vehicle, underscores the industry’s readiness to put its powerful intellectual capabilities toward worthwhile humanitarian endeavors,” said Mike Nichols, CAM, CAE, NBAA senior vice president, strategy and innovation.
Learn more about how the business aviation community is lending a hand during the COVID-19 crisis.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.