Japanese eVTOL manufacturer SkyDrive has reached an agreement with Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB) on the General Certification Plan for the company’s SKYDRIVE SD-05 eVTOL aircraft. The plan outlines how the aircraft will demonstrate compliance with regulatory requirements as part of the type certification process. The company said the plan defines the activities and coordination required between SkyDrive and the JCAB to verify the aircraft meets applicable safety and performance standards.
The General Certification Plan forms part of a broader certification framework that also includes additional plans covering specific areas such as structure, systems, electric motors and noise. SkyDrive said those plans have already been submitted to the JCAB and remain under review. Once agreements are finalized on those elements, the program is expected to proceed to compliance testing, which will include evaluation methods and test procedures outlined in the certification process.
The latest step follows an earlier milestone announced in February, when the JCAB issued a G-1 certification basis for the three-seat eVTOL aircraft, which established the airworthiness and performance requirements that will apply during certification.
“Reaching agreement with JCAB on the General Certification Plan represents an extremely significant milestone for SkyDrive,” Chief Technology Officer Arnaud Coville said.
Coville added that the company plans to continue its certification work with Japanese regulators while also coordinating with the Federal Aviation Administration towards certification in the United States.
In late February, SkyDrive also conducted a series of demonstration flights of its eVTOL in Tokyo as part of a Tokyo Metropolitan Government program examining potential urban eVTOL operations. The flights evaluated both aircraft performance and ground operations, including passenger processing procedures and vertiport infrastructure concepts.
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