eVTOL maker Volocopter files for insolvency in German court

Volocopter, a manufacturer of all-electric vertical take-off and landing, or eVTOL, aircraft, has filed an application to enter insolvency proceedings at the Landesgericht (state court) in Karlsruhe, Germany.

“Despite recent intensive fundraising efforts, finding a viable solution to maintain regular operations outside of insolvency proceedings has not been possible,” the company said in a statement.

Despite the insolvency filing, the company is vowing to continue its bid to get its VoloCity eVTOL aircraft certified this year by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Once the aircraft has been certified, the company said, it plans to enter the urban mobility market, a goal that it believes it can also achieve in 2025.

Volocopter, which was founded in 2011, has raised over $750 million from private investors including Mercedes-Benz, Honeywell and Blackrock. The Bruchsal, Germany-based company completed its most recent round of fundraising in June, but did not disclose the names of the investors or the amount of funding raised.

The company’s outgoing CEO, Dirk Hoke—Hoke announced plans to resign last September—said that Volocopter is well-positioned to succeed in the urban mobility market.

“We are ahead of our industry peers in our technological, flight test and certification progress,” Hoke said in a recent statement. “That makes us an attractive company to invest in while we organize ourselves with internal restructuring.”

Source: Volocopter

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