What’s it all about?The electrification of transport continues at pace (literally and metaphorically), and one of the most interesting areas of growth, particularly for those who have to deal with high levels of local and regional road traffic congestion, is electric taxi’s. One of the leading pioneers in this sector is Vertical Aerospace. I was able to speak to founder and CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick ahead of his hot footing to New York to ring the bell on their NYSE public Listing on 16th December. We talk disruption, electrification, innovation and of course entrepreneurship. I hope you enjoy the episode.About Stephen Fitzpatrick: Cleantech entrepreneur Stephen Fitzpatrick founded Vertical Aerospace in 2016, an electric aircraft company which is pioneering electric aviations. The Bristol, UK-based company has partnered with Microsoft, Rolls-Royce, Honeywell, GKN and Solvay to build one of the world’s most advanced electric VTOLs (vertical take-off and landing). Its VA-X4 aircraft will be capable of speeds of 200mph, a range of over 100miles, near silent when in flight and with zero operating emissions. Vertical has 1,350 conditional pre-orders of its aircraft for $5.4bn from the likes of American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Avolon and Bristow. The VA-X4 will be delivered to its customers, after certification, in 2024.Stephen is also the founder of OVO Energy, the UK’s largest independent energy company supplying British homes with 100% renewable energy. OVO hopes to decarbonise 5m British homes by 2030.About Vertical Aerospace:Vertical Aerospace is pioneering electric aviation. Over the past five years, Vertical has focused on building the most experienced and senior team in the eVTOL industry, who have over 1,700 combined years of engineering experience, and have certified and supported over 30 different civil and military aircraft and propulsion systems. Vertical’s unrivalled top-tier partner ecosystem is expected to de-risk operational execution and its pathway to certification, allow for a lean cost structure and enable production at scale. Vertical has received conditional pre-orders for a total of up to 1,350 aircraft from American Airlines, Avolon, Bristow and Iberojet, which includes pre-order options from Virgin Atlantic and Marubeni, and in doing so, is creating multiple potential near term and actionable routes to market. In June 2021, Vertical Aerospace announced a SPAC merger with Broadstone Acquisition Corp
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