Kawasaki, VoltAero lock-in hybrid engine deal at AirVenture

Kawasaki’s hottest motorcycle engine will soar skyward by 2024 in the Cassio 330, the first of a new family of piston-electric hybrids from French startup VoltAero.

Kawasaki started in aircraft and is ready to return, says Planning Division Manager Jamie Imai. “There’s not as much distance to an aviation engine as you’d think,” he says. The Japanese firm is exploring the market at the world’s largest aviation convention and fly-in in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

The new mock-up first debuted at the Paris Airshow in June. Voltaero will keep just one engine for early simplicity but hopes to modify Kawasaki’s H2R engine and its six-cylinder variant in six models, starting with 5 seats and ending with 12. The Cassio 330 will usually run on 330 kilowatts of lithium-ion battery power in a Safran E-Genius motor 100B. The Cassio 480 will be next, boosting performance with 480kw for 6 passengers, says Founder and CEO Jean Botti. “We have already validated the entire technology to carry 12 people,” he adds, and conversion to biofuels and hydrogen power should be simple.

The 330’s first flight “by the end of this year or early next year” will be gasoline-powered, says Bottie, “Because we don’t want to scare the regulators.” The twin-boom tail, pusher prop are uncommon but solid, he explains: “It’s still a classic, even if the shape is very different.”

It’s 29ft, 4 inches long with a wingspan of 32 ft, 8 inches and a target useful load of 1,389 lbs. Maximum cruise speed is 180knots with a range of 648 nm. “It flies up to 100 miles on battery power,” says Botti, and that clean silence makes for ideal operation. “Takeoffs are all-electric,” he says, “Basically, to respect the environment and everyone in it.”

Biofuel certifications could follow and by 2035 the H2R engine could be certified for hydrogen power, says Imai, with simple modifications. “You don’t need a supercharger on an aircraft, so we’ll put on a regular turbocharger,” he says.

Is Botti worried these big futuristic plans could distract from the first certification? “No,” he is certain, “We won’t do that.” The green fuels team is separate and distinct from the certification effort in Europe. “The European Aviation Safety Agency has assigned a dedicated team,” he says, looking for FAA approval second.

Type Certification to produce by 2025 is the goal, Botti says, but by then they’ll have found a U.S. manufacturer and a licensing deal.

“Today we have 218 total orders,” and Botti says the first 70 were placed in Oshkosh two years back based on just a partial mock-up. The retail price will be around $1.2 million. Deposits of 15 percent save a spot.

The mock-up’s avionics are generic, but a new deal announced at Oshkosh puts in the 14-inch Avidyne Quantum screens, part of a complete avionics array.

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