The archive · Space, Robots, Defence · Strategic decision · 2016–2026
Vertical Aerospace's eVTOL bet clears its hardest gate: two-way piloted transition
Stephen Fitzpatrick's UK eVTOL startup completed the world's first two-way piloted transition under CAA oversight, toward 2028 Valo certification.
Vertical Aerospace
What the business is
Vertical Aerospace designs and builds Valo, a piloted four-passenger electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (flight-test prototype VX4) targeting up to 100 miles at up to 150 mph, to fly city routes such as Canary Wharf–Heathrow and JFK–Manhattan.
Starting capital：December 2021 SPAC merger with Broadstone raised about $300M in total proceeds, including $200M in Mudrick Capital convertible notes and a $94M PIPE; as of 13 August 2026 it held ~$134M in cash plus ~$100M in new financing commitments from existing and new investors.
How it started
Stephen Fitzpatrick, founder of UK energy supplier Ovo, started Vertical Aerospace in 2016. In June 2021 it agreed a $2.2B SPAC merger with Broadstone, and in December 2021 it began trading on the NYSE with about $300M in total proceeds; at listing it claimed 1,350 conditional pre-orders worth about $5.4B, what it called the largest pre-order book in the industry.
What happened
An August 2023 accident badly damaged the first VX4 prototype at Cotswold Airport; Vertical blamed a propeller bonding issue. Its new full-scale prototype performed its first tethered piloted flight on 25 July 2024 under a CAA Permit to Fly, and the phase list in its April 2026 SEC filing shows tethered flight completed September 2024, thrustborne flight February 2025, wingborne flight September 2025, thrustborne transition 2 April 2026, and on 14 April 2026 chief test pilot Simon Davies completed a full two-way transition — making Vertical the second eVTOL company globally to do so and the first under civil aviation Design Organisation Approval oversight. In August 2026 its newest full-scale prototype repeated the milestone about two months after starting flight tests, and the aircraft flew public transition demos at Farnborough on five consecutive days.
How it ended up
Still scaling toward certification as of September 2026: ~$134M cash with at least 12 months of runway, critical design review targeted for end-2026, an early aircraft assembly facility at Cotswold due in Q3 2026, Valo certification targeted for 2028, and hybrid-electric and autonomous variants on the same platform in development.
Background
Vertical Aerospace is the UK eVTOL startup founded in 2016 by Ovo Energy's Stephen Fitzpatrick. It went public in December 2021 via a $2.2B SPAC merger with Broadstone, raising roughly $300M and claiming 1,350 conditional pre-orders worth about $5.4B from customers including American Airlines and Avolon. The bet: a piloted four-passenger aircraft that takes off vertically, cruises fast on wings, and lands vertically again — the two-way transition that defines eVTOL aviation.
In August 2023 an accident at Cotswold Airport badly damaged the first VX4 prototype, which Vertical traced to a propeller bonding issue. The rebuilt full-scale prototype's first tethered piloted flight came on 25 July 2024 under a CAA Permit to Fly, followed by thrustborne (February 2025) and wingborne (September 2025) phases. On 14 April 2026 Simon Davies flew the complete two-way transition: Vertical became the second eVTOL company globally to achieve it, and the first under civil aviation Design Organisation Approval oversight, so the flight data counts toward certification.
The milestone turned into commercial momentum. At the July 2026 Farnborough Airshow Vertical flew public transition demonstrations on five consecutive days in front of more than 140,000 visitors; its August 2026 H1 update cited about 1,500 pre-orders across four continents, roughly $100M in new financing commitments and ~$134M cash, with critical design review due by end-2026 and Valo certification targeted for 2028. The company remains pre-revenue and expects net cash outflows of about $150M over the following twelve months, so every flight milestone is also a fundraising argument.
What has to be true
- Two-way transition is the hardest and most defining maneuver in eVTOL flight, so proving it with a pilot onboard de-risks the whole certification case rather than just marketing it.
- Flying under CAA Design Organisation Approval means each test is instrumented, traceable and audit-ready — data regulators can reuse, shortening the road to type certification.
- A piloted, airline-focused product (American, Avolon, Bristow, GOL, Japan Airlines) targeted real commercial routes instead of autonomy-first showcases.
- Listing early via SPAC gave public capital but high redemptions left thin proceeds, forcing the company to convert flight-test progress into each new funding round.
What can be applied
Regulatory data is the asset in certification businesses: flying every phase under CAA oversight made each test count toward type approval, turning a technical first into progress on the certificate.
Aftermath
As of 2026-09-02 Vertical is scaling its certification plan: prototype phases including two-way transition are complete, critical design review is targeted by end-2026, early aircraft assembly at Cotswold opens in Q3 2026 and the expanded Energy Centre in Q4 2026. It holds ~$134M cash plus ~$100M in financing commitments, expects ~$150M net outflows over twelve months, and targets Valo certification in 2028. Hybrid-electric and autonomous variants are in development, with UK Ministry of Defence interest; partners include Honeywell, Syensqo, Evolito and Sonaca.
Sources
- Rolls-Royce and Virgin Atlantic back air taxi firm Vertical Aerospace
- Vertical Aerospace goes public, $300M in total proceeds raised
- Vertical's VX4 eVTOL achieves first tethered piloted flight
- Form 6-K: Vertical Aerospace Achieves World First Two-Way Piloted Transition Flight
- Vertical Aerospace Provides H1 2026 Business Update
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