HAMPTON, Va. - Flying the friendly skies may one day include time-saving trips in air taxis to get from point A to point B – and NASA researchers are currently working to make that future a reality.
They are using wind tunnel and flight tests to gather data on an electric Vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) scaled-down small aircraft that resembles an air taxi that aircraft manufacturers can use for their own designs, Diana Fitzgerald writes for NASA. Continue reading original article.
The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:
15 August 2025 - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is using a small-scale research aircraft called the RAVEN SWFT (Research Aircraft for eVTOL Enabling Technologies Subscale Wind Tunnel and Flight Test) to gather real-world data on flight dynamics of air-taxi-like vehicles. Weighing 38 pounds with a six-foot wingspan and 24 independently moving control effectors, the aircraft enables rapid, cost-effective testing of advanced flight-control systems.
The project conducts both wind tunnel and free flight tests, initially tethered. Lessons from wind tunnel data are used to reduce risk and refine control laws. A key feature is the ability to upload updated flight-control software in real time in under five minutes, which greatly accelerates testing tempo and data collection.
NASA's objective is to openly share the flight behavior data, especially under failure scenarios such as a motor failure, so that industry stakeholders can develop safer and more robust automated or autonomous flight-control systems for future air taxis.
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Jamie Whitney, Senior Editor
Military + Aerospace Electronics
