World’s Smallest One-Seater Flying Aircraft Greenlit By Japan’s MLIT

Having made headlines multiple times in the past by advertising its one-seater flying car, now SkyDrive, the Japanese air mobility company boasts of reaching a new milestone.

A step closer to success, its aircraft, dubbed the SD-03, has gotten its application for a type certificate approved by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT) in Japan.

SkyDrive Inc.’s chief executive officer, Tomohiro Fukuzawa, remarked, “SkyDrive and MLIT have been discussing how to safely develop and test this type of aircraft since the Public-Private Council to promote urban air mobility was launched in Japan in 2018 and SkyDrive received permission for the first outdoor test flight of its flying car. We are very pleased that our application for type certification has been accepted, and we will continue to work in close partnership with the government and MLIT to complete our development of a wholly safe and reliable flying car.”

The purpose of the MLIT issued certificate is to validate that the aircraft meets the environmental and safety requirements in terms of design, structure, strength, and performance.

With this application being approved, SkyDrive can now work in a more relaxed manner to further develop and test its SD-03, ensuring it complies with regulations.

Illustrating further, SkyDrive plans to start commercialising its flying car sometime in 2025 in the Osaka Bay area.

Claiming to be the first flying car developer to reach this phase in Japan, it is also the only company in the country to have successfully conducted manned test flights. 

Initially, SkyDrive presented its SD-03 flying car model last summer, which happened to be the first public demonstration of a flying car in Japan. 

Said demonstration took place at the Toyota Test Field, one of the largest in the country, measuring up to 2.5 acres (10,000 sq meters).

Its aircraft flew for approximately four minutes circling the field, controlled by both a pilot and a computer-assisted control system that ensured flight stability and safety.

As specified by SkyDrive, its SD-03 is the world’s smallest electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft, measuring 4,000 mm in length and width, and 2,000 mm in height.

Additionally, when on the ground, the SD-03 only takes up the space of two parked cars or two parking spots.

In terms of the powertrain, the SD-03 harbours electric motors that propel the rotors, which are deployed in four hubs.

Notably, each location houses two rotors that individually rotate in opposite directions, powered by their own motor.

Fukuzawa concluded, “We would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all of those who have supported us in various ways up to this point, and we will continue striving to launch a viable flying car business with the assistance of various organisations and companies, including MLIT, in pursuit of our common goal of realising an air mobility society.”