The Celera 500L is a really cool design. Otto Aviation claims its unusual shape provides a staggering 59 percent reduction in drag compared to aircraft in conventional geometry, as well as a significant leap in efficiency and range. Maybe this thing was supposed to be electric from the start, so it’s easy to guess that Otto collaborated with ZeroAvia to create a version with a hydrogen fuel cell transmission.

Otto claims the Celera 500L in the fossil fuel-powered standard version is “the most economical and commercially viable business aircraft in the world.” The “flying wick” shape might not bring it any fashion awards, but if the real beauty lies in flawless function, this thing might be a convex supermodel.

It runs on an efficient internal combustion engine with a capacity of 550 liters. doubles their range. Impressive 22:1 planning quality allows pilots to shut down the engine completely and plan up to 12 miles (200 km) without engine. That dreadful efficiency factor should run the Celera about 5-7 times cheaper than a comparable aircraft, according to Otto.

This is not a picture of a crane in the sky. Otto built a full-scale prototype, and by November last year, the company announced it had completed about 55 successful test flights, reaching speeds of over 250 miles per hour (400 km/h) and altitudes of 15,000 feet. and that all test flights have been approved. characteristics of the aircraft “. In the video below you can see how this thing flies.

Note that because the low-resistance laminar flow model relies on a width-to-length ratio that is impractical for a larger bird, it will not scale to the size of a full-size aircraft. But Otto says it will expand to 19 passengers, and there are many markets that could use an efficient glider with 6 to 19 passenger capacity.