The ERA (Electric Regional Aircraft) program was launched in 2021, with the aim to participate in the decarbonization of air transport, starting with a 19-seater aircraft certifiable by EASA in the CS-23 category. This launch was based on two essential criteria:
- First, ERA intends to address the continuously growing demand in air traffic (between February 2023 and February 2024, the domestic markets request has increased by 15% according to the latest studies published on April 4th by IATA);
- Secondly, the aircraft currently in service for regional flights are in great majority old generation planes, both in terms of avionics and in terms of propulsion, with engines that are very fuel-consuming.
ERA brings a new approach, with a hybrid-electric propulsion solution, which largely contributes to decarbonizing these regional routes. The market’s reaction is extremely encouraging, since 500 of these aircraft have already been pre-ordered.
From December last year to March this year, a vast program review enabled to validate MG4*, defining the different architectural choices for the materials and systems. ERA is therefore passing two major milestones in its development.
On one hand, AURA AERO has just launched the first large calls for tender for the following work-packages: Fuselage Design, Airframe Engineering Services, Turbogenerator, Primary Flight Control System Actuators and Inceptors. According to schedule, the first parts of the flight test aircraft should be manufactured as soon as beginning 2025. This new step will enable the manufacturer to select the suppliers which will participate in this ambitious program.
On the other hand, in view of obtaining the certification by European and US aviation authorities for its ERA aircraft, whose entry in service is planned before 2030, AURA AERO signed with EASA his Wednesday morning, on the opening of AERO EXPO airshow, a PAC (Pre-Application Services Contract). Prior to the certification process of the aircraft, this contract marks a new milestone in the ERA program, by helping set the frame within which EASA will later certify the aircraft.
By committing to this PAC, in Category 2: “Introduction of a product with embodied innovative or disruptive technologies”, AURA AERO engages with EASA and will receive technical advice services, while helping the Authority draft the generic elements to set the foundations of the future formal product certification basis.
AURA AERO is already certified as an aircraft manufacturer from design to production, having obtained EASA PART 21G approval (manufacturing) in November 2021 and PART 21J approval (industrial design) in September 2023.
AURA AERO’s main engineers hold strong skills and experience in CS-25 certification, which will be very helpful to be adapted to the CS-23 category in which ERA will be certified.
For AURA AERO, engaging in an EASA PAC process will lead to the validation of its disruptive technology choices for ERA, such as the avionic systems, the Fly-By-Wire system and the hybrid-electric propulsion system, in view of the final certification of the aircraft.
According to Wilfried Dufaud, Co-founder and Executive Director of AURA AERO: “For all the AURA AERO team and for our industrial and financial partners, this agreement with EASA is a major milestone in the ERA program and can be considered as the groundbreaking of the ERA certification process”.
Luc Tytgat, High Representative to the EASA Executive Director, said “AURA AERO is the first company to cooperate with EASA in the field of electric commuter aircraft. We at EASA are convinced that General Aviation and mid-tier companies are good incubators for developing innovative solutions and that the lessons learned from this PAC will contribute to the decarbonization of air transport and the future employment of green technologies in aviation. This should enable us to efficiently support the safe and timely introduction of these disruptive technologies into the aviation world, with the expected benefits for the environment”.
* MG = maturity gate
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About AURA AERO:
A pioneer in low-carbon aviation, AURA AERO is committed to serve mankind by designing and manufacturing aircraft that accelerate air transport decarbonization, by industrializing disruptive technologies resolutely focused on the aviation of tomorrow. Combining the best in the aeronautical industry and digital technologies, AURA AERO manufactures aircraft that offer unrivaled efficiency on the market of eco-efficient vehicles.
Founded in 2018, AURA AERO is based at Toulouse-Francazal airport, France, and employs 250 people. In addition to its many shareholders, the manufacturer is supported by the Occitanie Region, the BPI (French Public Investment Bank) and venture capital firm Innovacom. Laureate of the France Relance and France 2030 programs, AURA AERO is a member of the steering committee of AZEA (Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation), a European Union initiative, and is one of the 16 founders-companies of the European Future Mobility Taskforce, launched in January 2024.
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Contacts for the media:
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