BAE Systems, Embraer to Develop Defence Variants for Eve eVTOL Aircraft

BAE Systems and Embraer announced plans Tuesday to embark on a joint study to explore the development of Eve’s electric Vertical Take Off and Landing (eVTOL) vehicle for the defence and security market.

The joint study builds on Eve’s development for the urban air mobility market and will look at how the aircraft could provide cost-effective, sustainable and adaptable capability as a defence variant.

Engineers from BAE Systems’ Air sector in Lancashire, UK, will work together with the Embraer Defense & Security team based São José dos Campos, in Brazil to explore how a defence variant could be used for a range of applications such as personnel transportation, surveillance and reconnaissance, disaster relief and humanitarian response.

Eve’s eVTOL could help to transform defence operations, whilst reducing their environmental impact – at a much lower operating cost than today’s platforms, BAE Systems said in a release.

The all-electric aircraft is part of Embraer’s commitment towards more sustainable aviation and has come out of Eve, an independent company dedicated to accelerating the global Urban Air Mobility (UAM) ecosystem. The joint study directly supports BAE Systems’ strategy to accelerate sustainable technology development through increased investment in research and development, as well as working with industry partners, SMEs and academia.