Canada-based electric aircraft start up Limosa and Airborne have agreed terms for the production of the Limosa LimoConnect aircraft prototype airframe in parallel to designing automated manufacturing lines and supporting Limosa's industrialisation from prototype through to serial production. With their highly collaborative approach, the partners aim for the fast ramp up of the Limosa airframe production and ensure both trade-offs and development will be able to meet the pressing timescales of the OEM.

The LimoConnect is an all-electric, one plus seven seater vertical and conventional take off and landing (eVTOL and eCTOL) aircraft. The strength of the LimoConnect is its flexibility to adopt different mission capabilities as well as the capability to take off and land conventionally, so that it can use available airports before the emergence and certification of new vertiport infrastructures. The type certification of the LimoConnect under Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) regulations and its entry into service are planned for 2028.

With facilities in the UK and Netherlands, Airborne has a capability set that covers the entire product development cycle for composite structures, from initial feasibility through to serial automated production and the supply of digital manufacturing equipment. These capabilities include design, tooling, stress analysis, prototype production and process development, economic analysis, automation and software development.

Limosa founder and CEO Dr Hamid Hamidi says: "Design for manufacturability and serviceability is the core mission at Limosa. The production rate of these new technology vehicles will sit somewhere between automotive and aerospace industry products, so I believe the integration of automated composite manufacturing will be a game changer. I am very proud and excited by this partnership between Limosa and Airborne, and I believe that the combined automated composite manufacturing capability of Airborne will enable Limosa to mass produce the composite airframe structure by having environmental issues, such as waste reduction and recyclability, in mind from the very beginning."

Airborne business development manager, AAM Jamie Snudden adds: “The production rates and technical requirements that are being suggested for AAM are different to any markets that have come before, and therefore a new approach to automation is needed. There also needs to be a highly collaborative approach taken between design and industrialisation functions to ensure trade-offs are fully reviewed and development occurs rapidly to reach the timescales being suggested by OEMs. I'm very excited by this collaboration between Airborne and Limosa, which is taking a long term and innovative view for the development of the LimoConnect. Airborne is looking forward to supporting Limosa in bringing about its vision."