Regional commuting in Norway has long been touted as one of the areas that could benefit most from the deployment of an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle ecosystem. And more quiet and connected skies for rural residents of the country, cut off from urban areas by mountainous terrain and long and winding roads, could indeed soon become a reality. Lilium has signed an agreement with AAP Aviation Group for 40 Lilium Jets. The two parties will also collaborate on developing landing sites across Scandinavia.

AAP Aviation specializes in crew management but also operational and technical issues like airspace solutions, regulations, training, and maintenance requirements, as well as infrastructure and technology development for both crewed and crewless vehicles. This includes drones as well as upcoming urban air mobility (UAM) solutions.

Espen Høiby, the company CEO, shared the following statement on the collaboration with Lilium,

"We have disrupted the aviation industry once before and are set to do so again. Due to the mix of water, terrain, and mountains, Norway is particularly well-suited to regional air mobility. With its vertical take-off and landing capability, high speed and regional range, the Lilium Jet can achieve hours of time savings compared with today's transportation modes. The Lilium Jet performance, its low noise profile, and its spacious cabin makes it the ideal aircraft to develop sustainable air transport in Scandinavia."

Lilium Jet rendering
Lilium is currently conducting flight tests of its eVTOL vehicle in Spain. Photo: Lilium

The first eVTOL jet

The Lilium Jet is currently under development in Germany. It is expected to carry between four and six passengers and have a range of 250 kilometers. The jet differs significantly in design from the other eVTOLs currently being developed in that it features electric jet engines integrated into the wing flaps. It is intended to be adapted for a range of uses, including a non-passenger configuration serving regional logistics missions.

Daniel Wiegand, CEO of Lilium, commented on the latest deal with AAP Aviation,

"Norway is the world's leader in sustainable practices, known to have the highest penetration of electric car ownership. Together with AAP's operational expertise and knowledge of the region, we have the ideal conditions for an eVTOL revolution. We are proud to team up with AAP Aviation to bring electric, high-speed mobility to Norway and the rest of Scandinavia."

Bristow_Florida flyover rendition
Lilium recently partnered with the Bristow Group to service its upcoming Florida UAM network. Photo: Lilium

From Florida to rural Norway

Lilium has been on a roll lately with the announcements. Just yesterday at the Farnborough Airshow, the air mobility innovator declared it had partnered with the Bristow Group. More than providing Lilium with maintenance services for the eVTOL launch network in Florida, the deal gives Bristow the purchase rights to 50 Lilium Jets.

Simple Flying is at the Farnborough Airshow this week. For all the latest news from the show, click here!

But there will be some competition for Lilium and APP in setting up a Norwegian eVTOL network. Regional airline Widerøe has a partnership with Embraer eVTOL spin-off Eve to develop market readiness exercises and a vehicle concept of operation study in Scandinavia. Let's see who comes silently soaring over the fjords first.