The SkyPak V1 from Ascenddynamics from Poplar, Wisconsin, USA is a full-scale one person eVTOL multicopter backpack for advanced air mobility (AAM). The V1 is a flight demonstrator to prove the concept at scale can carry a person with controlled and stable flight. It started in 2020 with a small-scale prototype that looked much more like a hobbyist drone.
source.image: ascenddynamics
Weighing in at 80-pounds, Ascend Dynamics’ SkyPak V1 electric jetpack boasts 12 brushless DC motors 7 kW each for a combined power output of 84 kW (112 hp) that run six pairs of counter-rotating propellers.
source.image: ascenddynamics
Flight tests with the V1.4 prototype carried a weighted mannequin with success. SkyPak V1 has proven the concept by flying a flight test dummy as well as providing valuable test data on the controllability and stability of the aircraft design.
source.image: ascenddynamics
This aircraft is possible because the middle rotors lift from behind the center of gravity to pitch the aircraft forward while the upper and lower rotors are angled such that they lift in front of the center of gravity to pitch the aircraft backward. This layout and control of pitch is what makes the SkyPak so unique and allows for some really diverse uses.
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The flight time of the V1 is two minutes and the cruise speed and range is unknown at this time. The backpack multicopter sports 12 propellers (6 counter-rotating pairs), 12 electric motors, a flight controller, electronic speed controllers, lithium batteries and wiring mounted on an aluminum welded frame. The total power of the backpack aircraft is 112 hp (84 kW).
The SkyPak could have a lot of applications, be it in search and rescue, law enforcement, firefighting, the military, wind turbine maintenance, communication tower maintenance, and more.
