{"id":"c53ac143-fe1e-4cb9-90c0-c385bd6fa3d0","modelId":"984f70fe-7fb2-429c-b48f-ccd2f69cdf8c","versionId":null,"locationId":"581db99e-3f5c-42c7-b6ea-addf6d9100b4","operatorId":"d2e6da72-bc7e-457b-9869-3f3f4ff4d8aa","ownerId":null,"slug":"vertical-vx4-first-transition-flight-2026","status":"operational","firstSeen":"2026-04-01T00:00:00.000Z","statusChangeReason":null,"contractType":null,"pilotOutcome":null,"endedAt":null,"unitsOnSite":null,"tasksPerformed":null,"shiftStructure":null,"hoursPerDay":null,"siteType":null,"operatorConfirmed":null,"humanSupervisionOnsite":null,"locationPrecisionTier":null,"deploymentScale":null,"siteEnvironment":null,"operatorType":null,"sourceQualityTier":null,"manufacturerSerial":null,"reviewStatus":"unreviewed","sources":[{"url":"https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260506614110/en/Vertical-Aerospace-Provides-First-Quarter-Update-Achieves-Key-Execution-Milestones-and-Advances-Toward-Certification","title":"Vertical Aerospace Q1 update","sourceName":"BusinessWire","publishedAt":"2026-04-01"}],"notes":"Vertical Aerospace completed the first two-way piloted transition flight with VX4 in April 2026, becoming the first eVTOL to do so under civil aviation Design Organisation Approval oversight.","keyFacts":["First two-way piloted transition flight","VX4","Apr 2026","DOA oversight"],"reviewNote":null,"exposureHours":null,"deploymentMilesEstimate":null,"exposureBasis":null,"customerSegment":null,"scaleTier":null,"contractValueUsd":null,"contractValueBasis":null,"customerCompanyId":null,"customerExternalName":null,"createdAt":"2026-08-27T17:46:37.284Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-27T17:46:37.284Z","model":{"id":"984f70fe-7fb2-429c-b48f-ccd2f69cdf8c","companyId":"d2e6da72-bc7e-457b-9869-3f3f4ff4d8aa","modelName":"VX4","slug":"vx4","description":"Four-seat eVTOL with tilt-rotor configuration. EASA DOA and UK CAA Design Organization Approval. Flight testing at Cotswold Airport with full-scale prototype. American Airlines conditional purchase agreement.","formFactor":"other","industryVertical":"passenger_transport","environment":"airspace","maturityStage":"research","lifecycleState":"active","supersededByModelId":null,"specs":{},"manufacturerSerial":null,"reviewStatus":"reviewed","sources":[{"url":"https://vertical-aerospace.com/vx4/","title":"VX4 aircraft page","sourceName":"Vertical Aerospace"},{"url":"https://www.caa.co.uk/vertical-aerospace/","title":"UK CAA Vertical Aerospace overview","sourceName":"UK CAA"},{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vertical_Aerospace_VX4","title":"VX4 (re-verified primary source)"},{"url":"https://vertical-aerospace.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Vertical-Aerospace-Unveils-Advanced-VX4-Prototype.pdf","date":"2024-07-18","title":"Vertical Aerospace unveils full-scale VX4 prototype","sourceName":"Vertical Aerospace"}],"aliases":[],"collisionRisk":"low","reviewNote":"Reviewed 2026-07-14: source-gated bulk flip (non-empty sources[]). Ben-approved.","manufacturerTermForTeleop":null,"keyFacts":[{"label":"Design (company-claimed)","value":"Tilt-rotor eVTOL for a pilot plus four passengers on short urban and regional flights."},{"label":"Range and speed (company-claimed, Jul 2024)","value":"Up to 100 miles range and up to 150 mph cruise; 20% better power-to-weight than the prior prototype."},{"label":"Certification (reported, unconfirmed)","value":"UK CAA certification in progress; first crewed flight in 2023."},{"label":"Suppliers (reported, unconfirmed)","value":"Rolls-Royce propulsion partnership, Honeywell avionics and GKN Aerospace structures."},{"label":"Orders (reported, unconfirmed)","value":"American Airlines has a pre-order."}],"createdAt":"2026-06-07T15:28:35.348Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-12T22:02:34.544Z","unitsInFieldClaimed":null,"unitsInFieldVerified":null,"unitsManufacturedClaimed":null,"unitsManufacturedVerified":null,"unitsAsOf":null,"unitsSource":null,"salesModel":null,"priceUndisclosedSince":null,"autonomyClass":null,"autonomyStatement":null,"autonomyStatementSource":null,"demoForensics":null,"exportControlClass":null,"minCommitment":null,"warrantyTerms":null,"serviceModel":null,"productionRateClaimed":null,"productionRateEvidenced":null,"teleopRatioDisclosed":null,"interventionRateDisclosed":null,"company":{"id":"d2e6da72-bc7e-457b-9869-3f3f4ff4d8aa","name":"Vertical Aerospace","slug":"vertical-aerospace","description":"British eVTOL developer of the VX4 aircraft. EASA Design Organization Approval. Flight testing at Cotswold Airport. Partnership with [American airlines](/companies/american-airlines).","status":"public","founded":2016,"hq":"Bristol, UK","hqLat":51.4430141,"hqLng":-2.5816622,"hqGeocodedAt":"2026-08-05T14:53:46.276Z","hqAddress":null,"hqPrecision":null,"website":"vertical-aerospace.com","fundingTotal":"1395000000","type":"hardware","roles":["robot_maker","robot_operator"],"reviewStatus":"reviewed","heatIndex":77,"lifecycleState":"active","supersededByCompanyId":null,"sources":[{"url":"https://vertical-aerospace.com/","title":"Vertical Aerospace official website","sourceName":"Vertical Aerospace"},{"url":"https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr584e15l7do","title":"Vertical Aerospace VX4 flight test progress","sourceName":"BBC"}],"keyFacts":[{"label":"Founded","value":"2016, Bristol, UK"},{"label":"Founder","value":"Stephen Fitzpatrick (CEO, ex-OVO Energy founder)"},{"label":"Product","value":"VX4 eVTOL - tilt-rotor design; 4 passengers + pilot; designed for short-haul urban and regional flights"},{"label":"Funding","value":"Series A $25M; B $315M; C $205M; total ~$545M+"},{"label":"SPAC","value":"Merged with Broadstone 2021; NYSE: EVTL"},{"label":"CAA","value":"UK CAA certification in progress; first crewed flight achieved 2023; American Airlines pre-order"},{"label":"Strategic","value":"Rolls-Royce partnership on propulsion; Honeywell avionics; GKN Aerospace structures"}],"aliases":[],"collisionRisk":"low","reviewNote":"Reviewed 2026-07-14: source-gated bulk flip (non-empty sources[]). Ben-approved.","atsProvider":null,"atsSlug":null,"factoryLocations":null,"manufacturingCapacity":null,"orgType":null,"burnSignal":null,"litigationEvents":null,"insurancePostureDisclosed":null,"unitEconomicsDisclosed":null,"tickerSymbol":"EVTL","stockExchange":"NYSE","secCik":null,"revenueUsd":null,"revenueBasis":null,"revenueAsOf":null,"employeeCount":330,"employeeCountBasis":null,"employeeCountAsOf":null,"marketCapUsd":null,"marketCapAsOf":null,"marketCapSource":null,"createdAt":"2026-06-07T15:28:00.538Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-21T22:25:05.638Z"}},"version":null,"location":{"id":"581db99e-3f5c-42c7-b6ea-addf6d9100b4","name":"Cotswold Airport, UK","slug":"cotswold-airport-uk","kind":"facility","parentLocationId":null,"region":"Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom","lat":51.6675,"lng":-2.0686,"reviewStatus":"reviewed","aliases":["Cotswold Airport","Cotswold Airport, UK","Kemble Airport","Kemble Airfield","RAF Kemble","EGBP","GBA"],"collisionRisk":"high","reviewNote":"Private general aviation airport near the village of Kemble in Gloucestershire, England (IATA: GBA, ICAO: EGBP). Formerly RAF Kemble — a Royal Air Force station used for military aircraft maintenance and training — the site was renamed Cotswold Airport in 2009 and is now operated by Kemble Air Services Limited. The airport features a 1,837-meter grass runway (08/26) and serves executive travel, private jets, aviation training, and event hire. Cotswold Airport is a primary flight test location for [Vertical Aerospace](/companies/vertical-aerospace), the UK-based eVTOL developer. On April 14, 2026, Vertical's chief test pilot Simon Davies flew the [VX4](/models/vx4) prototype from Cotswold Airport, completing the world's first two-way piloted transition flight under civil aviation Design Organisation Approval (DOA) regulatory oversight — transitioning from vertical take-off to wingborne cruise and back to vertical landing in a single continuous sortie. This made Vertical only the second company in the world (after [Joby Aviation](/companies/joby-aviation)) to achieve piloted two-way transition in a full-scale tiltrotor eVTOL. All Vertical flight tests since 2023 have been conducted from Cotswold Airport with oversight from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), which is partnering with EASA to certify Valo, Vertical's commercial aircraft successor to the VX4. Sources: https://www.aerospacetestinginternational.com/news/vertical-aerospace-evtol-completes-two-way-piloted-transition-flight.html ; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotswold_Airport ; https://cotswoldairport.com/","createdAt":"2026-08-27T17:46:35.510Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-29T19:44:57.466Z"},"operator":{"id":"d2e6da72-bc7e-457b-9869-3f3f4ff4d8aa","name":"Vertical Aerospace","slug":"vertical-aerospace","description":"British eVTOL developer of the VX4 aircraft. EASA Design Organization Approval. Flight testing at Cotswold Airport. 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