Delivery and logistics company UPS has taken the bold step of ordering ten electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft (eVTOL) for its UPS Flight Forward subsidiary. UPS expects to be operating them in 2024 and has an option to purchase 150.
The eVTOL in question is the BETA Technologies ALIA-250 which has four propellers for vertical lift and a single pusher prop at the rear for cruise flight.
BETA says the ALIA has a max weight of 6,000 lb, can carry up to 200 cubic feet of cargo weighing a max of 1,400 lb, has a range of 50nm and takes 50 minutes to fully recharge.
The UPS order also includes BETA’s recharging station to facilitate faster cargo loading and unloading. The charging station also offers the aircraft’s batteries a second life. After the batteries’ first lifecycle in the aircraft is over, they can be fitted to the charging station to recharge the aircraft’s onboard batteries as well as UPS’s fleet of electric ground vehicles.
“This is all about innovation with a focus on returns for our business, our customers and the environment,” said Juan Perez, UPS chief information and engineering officer.
“These new aircraft will create operational efficiencies in our business, open possibilities for new services and serve as a foundation for future solutions to reduce the emissions profile of our air and ground operation.”
With the capability to take off and land directly on UPS property, UPS believes eVTOL aircraft are perfect for moving smaller loads that would otherwise fly to and from airports on small feeder aircraft or take even longer by ground.
UPS says it has more than 12,000 alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles deployed worldwide, and is committed to purchase up to 10,000 electric vehicles.