SUPERNAL’S ADAM SLEPIAN ON BEING AN EARLY MOVER IN EVTOL

Slepian believes 2028 is the “sweet spot” to be entering the eVTOL market.

If anything, those extra few years will buy the eVTOL developer time to closely watch first movers like Joby and Archer navigate through the regulatory hurdles to get their aircraft certified and begin operations in 2025.

Supernal is in the developmental phase of its aircraft program. Its eVTOL is designed to initially be a piloted aircraft with four passengers, targeting a range of 60 miles (97 kilometers) and cruising speed of up to 180 miles per hour (290 kilometers per hour).

The company plans to submit its certification application to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) by the end of this year, begin test-flying a full-scale technology demonstrator in 2024, and prepare to enter the market in 2028. It’s a timeframe that Slepian believes puts Supernal in an early mover position where the market will still be “pretty small. We think it will scale more in the mid to late 2030s.”

It’s also a timeframe that aligns with the FAA’s Innovate 28 program, developed to support initial trial operations of eVTOLs in several U.S. early adopter communities in time for the Los Angeles Summer Olympics in 2028.