DALLAS — Lilium GmbH reached a major milestone as it started production of its all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) jet following the arrival of the jet's fuselage. This marks a turning point for Lilium's industrial partners and supply chains working to make sustainable regional aviation a reality.

As production begins at the company's Wessling, Germany, facility, the fuselage will be matched and joined with the aircraft's canards (small winglike projections attached to an aircraft forward of the main wings) and main wings.

Spanning 175,000 square feet, Lilium's Wessling facilities include its testing and manufacturing center, propulsion and aerostructures facility, final assembly building, and the newly constructed battery assembly building and logistics hub. It is at the logistics hub that aircraft parts are ready for integration on the final assembly line.

As reported in Business Airport International, Lilium's CEO, Klaus Roewe, expressed excitement at seeing the design become real: "To see the first aircraft fuselage on the final assembly line ready to join up with the canard and wings is a proud moment for everyone involved in our mission to make aviation sustainable," he said. Mr. Roewe affirmed the company's belief that the Lilium Jet will usher in a new era of sustainable air transportation.

Lilium's COO, Yves Yernsi, praised the collaborative effort of Lilium's aerostructure suppliers and partners, Aciturri and Aernnova, in producing the fuselage and other key components necessary to turn the design into reality.

The Future of eVTOL

In its article eVTOL Leaders Continue to Build Momentum (Nov/Dec 2023 Verstiflite magazine), Electric VTOL News reported that Lilium expects to conduct the first crewed flight of its Lilium Jet in late 2024 and is aiming to secure the type certification of the Lilium Jet from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EUASA) in late 2025. Electric VTOL News cited other interesting facts about the Lilium Jet, including:

• Ohio (US) auto glass company Saint-Gobain Aerospace will produce windows and windshields for the jet that are lightweight and will reduce energy consumption
• Spain's Aciturri aerostructures firm expects to build seven examples of the production jet
• Lilium designed the Lilium Jet’s electric motor in collaboration with Denso and Honeywell, while Aeronamic contributed to the titanium compressor fan and SKF to the electric motor bearings. The motor has a power density of over 100 kW and weighs just over 4 kg (8.8 lb).

Founded by Engineers

Four engineers and Ph.D. students at the Technical University of Munich founded Lilium GmbH in 2015: Daniel Wiegand, Co-founder and Chief Engineer for Innovation and Future Programmes; Sebastian Born, Co-founder and Head of Structure and Interior; Matthias Meiner, Co-founder and Chief Engineer, and Patrick Nathen, Co-founder.

Lilium GmbH is traded on the NASDAQ. In a Q2 2023 letter to shareholders, Lilium announced that it had raised an additional US$192 million in capital, bringing the total funds raised in the past three months to US$292 million.

Featured image: Lilium Jet (eVTOL) fuselage. Photo: Lilium GmbH