Aviation startups often dream big and invest heavily, but many fall short as time or money runs out before their vision takes off. Customers don’t always embrace new ideas as expected, adding to the challenges along the way.
Still, it’s not all bleak. Failures like Eclipse Aviation, Lilium, and Volocopter provide valuable lessons. By setting realistic goals, addressing challenges step by step, and ensuring solid financial support, future innovators in eVTOLs and other aviation ventures have a better chance at success. Big dreams drive progress, but practical strategies and steady execution make them achievable.
Here’s to learning, growing, and soaring higher. As for me, I’m off to the Santa Fe Flamenco New Year’s Eve show. Happy New Year to all!
Eclipse started out badly by underestimating weight of their product, which meant Williams would no longer supply engines.
Split from Williams meant loss of expertise and resources, so Eclipse had to set up and hire elsewhere.
IIRC cost of finished product was badly underestimated thus potential market overestimated - with some of VLJ hype in the industry. Eclipse at least made and flew an airplane, just ‘too little too late’ for cash reserves.
(Entrepreneur came out of Microsoft, which is sloppy in development and in a business where a great many products have ‘any day now’ delivery estimate. Some software products are well run some not - a friend started in one of the ‘digital’ or such names products long ago, saw first hand the difference (he was on a well run project that was almost on time).