Welcome Address: A Defining Year for Advanced Air Mobility

Nicolas Zart, Founder, Electric Air Mobility

Commercial pilots-to-service, sharper FAA/EASA guidance, better batteries & thermal strategies, and tighter links with airports/vertiports are reshaping AAM. Cut through the noise to what actually moved in 2025—and what it means for NA programs in 2026.

• 2025 milestones that change certification, ops, and investment.

• Current technical/regulatory blockers and near-term remedies.

• Where OEMs, Tier-1s, and airports are placing 2026 bets.

• High-value collaboration lanes (OEM–airport–city–utility).

• Concrete actions to de-risk manufacturing and route launch.

From Vision to Vertiports: Accelerating Commercial Readiness at Scale

Andy Krebs, Head of Infrastructure, Joby Aviation

With certification pathways firming up and public-private coalitions forming, the question is speed: how quickly can safe, reliable eVTOL services be woven into airspace, cities, and daily life? This session distills what it takes to move from flight tests to scalable operations.

• Close out certification: Coordinate final findings with multi-region regulators.

• Sync with infrastructure: Align aircraft needs to vertiport, ATC/UTM, and grid timelines.

• Evolve the model: Government/defense/commercial partnerships that unlock routes.

• Build at rate: Localized supply chains, factory automation, and QA at scale.

• Win public trust: Live demos, transparent noise/ENV data, and community playbooks.

• Operationalize: Airline-style simulations → schedule reliability & turnaround SOPs.

• Measure what matters: KPIs for safety, on-time performance, cost, and customer experience.

Powered Lift Light Sport Aircraft as Proving Ground for Advanced Air Mobility

Chen Rosen, CTO, AIR

The FAA’s MOSAIC rule, finalized in July, opens a practical pathway for certifying powered lift light sport aircraft (LSA). The AIR ONE illustrates how these aircraft provide a lower-risk proving ground for electric propulsion and vertical operations, offering real-world experience in less congested airspace and private aviation. This approach reduces certification challenges while preparing the industry for broader Advanced Air Mobility adoption.

• Understand how the MOSAIC rule accelerates certification for powered lift LSAs.

• Identify the advantages of testing eVTOL technologies in less congested, lower-intensity environments, and see how simpler designs such as the AIR ONE support this process.

• Recognize how powered lift LSAs build real-world experience with electric and vertical operations.

• Evaluate their role in reducing risk and enabling broader AAM readiness.

Agile, Data-Driven eVTOL Pack Design in a Dynamic Battery Market

Eli Leland, CTO and Co-Founder, VOLTAIQ

Battery packs in the eVTOL space demand extreme power density, rigorous safety, and uncompromising reliability—while cell technologies, chemistries, and supply chains evolve rapidly. This session provides best practices for meeting these challenges and staying competitive.

• Why legacy approaches fall short: Traditional stage-gate processes weren’t designed for continuous pack development across multiple suppliers, evolving chemistries, and shifting trade environments.

• The qualification data challenge: Rate testing, cycle life, HPPC, and safety protocols generate massive data volumes across disparate sources—from cell to pack to system—creating development bottlenecks.

• From data chaos to AI-ready infrastructure: Automated data integration, cleaning, and feature extraction accelerate insight while building the foundation for AI-powered pack development.

• Proven production workflows: Real-world examples demonstrate 20-20,000x workflow acceleration, enabling teams to identify issues faster, pinpoint root causes, and make data-driven decisions.Serviceability/swaps: Blind-mate HV/coolant, rapid BMS reprovisioning; line-replaceable modules.

Next Generation Structural Paste Adhesives:Designed for Rapid eVTOL Assembly

Kaspar Schaerer, PhD Manager of Product Development, Henkel

Overcoming the natural limitations of traditional structural pastes and adhesives is a key step in the assembly of eVTOLs and supports the rapid transition from certificationto large- scale commercialization. Technological breakthrough approaches to address bonding of uneven parts, extended open time combined with short cure time and film like superior mechanical properties will be presented.

• Bonding parts: Uneven surfaces: Pastes versus films adhesives.

• Surface treatment: Metal, thermosets and thermoplastic composite materials.

• Mechanical properties: Increased toughness after high temperature cure.

• Mechanical Limitations: Temperature and strength requirements.

• Raw Materials: Unique combinations of resin and toughening agents.

• Application: Paste versus films, temperature, open time and cure time.

• Automation: Status and future designs.

• Sustainability: TSCA&REACH, waste and energy reduction.

From First to Future: The EHang Blueprint for Pilotless eVTOL Certification and Commercialization

Conor Yang, CFO, EHang

The certification of EHang’s EH216-S in China marked a historic milestone for the eVTOL industry, transitioning from prototype development to authorized commercial operations. This achievement provides critical insights for stakeholders across the globe as they navigate the complex path from type certification to large-scale commercialization.

• How they certified: TC + airworthiness under CAAC—evidence, test flow, and audit rhythm.
  

• Mind the gaps: CAAC vs FAA vs EASA—where rules align, where they diverge, what to bridge.
  

• Ops readiness: Safety cases, vertiport integration, SOPs for day-one reliability.
  

• Scale smart: What China’s deployment teaches about public acceptance and U-space/ATM integration.
  

• Global roadmap: Reusing artifacts for international validation and faster market entry.

Mission-Critical by Design:Building eVTOL-Ready Components that Don’t Fail

Danielle Wilkerson, Vice President of Business Development, The Partner Companies

This session unpacks TPC’s approach to engineering and manufacturing mission-critical components and assemblies for next-gen aircraft, with an emphasis on requirements flow-down, design-for-reliability, qualification, and production discipline suited to eVTOL and uncrewed platforms.

Engineering Espresso Break

Hosted By

Model-Based Systems Engineering Approach for Design and Development of Drones and eVTOLs

Dr. Behnam Afsharpoya, Senior Solution Consultant, Dassault Systèmes

To allow drones and eVTOLs to fly and meet regulatory requirements, a series of validation and verification processes is necessary to demonstrate safety compliance. Traceability between regulations, requirements, and design solutions must be enforced from the early stages of engineering. A single source of truth enables digital continuity of data and maintains clarity of design intent for certification authorities.

This presentation explains how a model-based systems engineering approach can integrate and evolve collections of models from one development phase to the next throughout the life span of an air vehicle. This method is applicable to developing various complex systems involving multi-discipline and multi-physics aspects in a virtual environment.

• Grasp how MBSE establishes end-to-end traceability from regulations and requirements to design solutions, supporting certification.
  

• Learn to implement a single source of truth for digital continuity, preserving design intent and auditability across teams and phases.
  

• Apply MBSE to integrate multi-discipline/multi-physics models and streamline V&V, enabling faster iteration and risk reduction in a virtual environment.

Fiber Laser Welded Battery Plates: Enabling High-Integrity Thermal and Electrical Performance for eVTOL Applications

Adrian Serna, Business Development Specialist, AdvanTech International

Fiber laser welding is emerging as the joining technology of choice for battery interconnects and cooling plates. This session examines how ultra-precise, low-distortion fiber laser welding enables reliable, thermally stable, and electrically efficient joints at the module and pack level—while reducing process variability, weight, and total cost.

• Comparing fiber laser vs. ultrasonic and resistance welding for thin-plate joining—beam quality, penetration depth, and minimal heat-affected zones.
  

• Cell tab interconnects, current collectors, and liquid-cooled cold plate seals.
  

• Achieving high-conductivity joints that maintain pressure integrity under cyclic load and vibration.
  

• Real-time seam tracking, closed-loop power control, and quality assurance for aerospace-grade reliability.
  

• Optimizing joint geometry, material pairing (Al/Cu/Ni), and laser parameters for scalable, automated production.
  

• Non-destructive evaluation techniques for weld validation and defect detection.
  

• Integrating laser welding systems into automated battery production lines for high throughput and minimal rework.

Advancing HIL & SIL Validation for eVTOL: From Tip to Battery to Tail

Peter Blume, President, Bloomy

SIL/HIL turn design intent into cert-grade evidence—before flight. This session shows how modular, scalable benches validate propulsion, BMS, flight controls, and avionics under real-time scenarios, faults, and environmental edge cases to cut risk, cost, and schedule.

• Why now: Use SIL/HIL to de-risk certification and compress test cycles.
  

• Architect the rigs: Modular benches that model full-aircraft behavior (FCC, BMS, drives, avionics).
  

• Fault with purpose: Structured fault injection (shorts, sensor drift, timing, OEI) with coverage metrics.
  

• Autonomy & energy: Validate autonomous logic and energy management under realistic missions.
  

• Automate evidence: Trace requirements → tests → reports; configuration control for repeatability.
  

• Integrate & scale: Tie benches into MBSE/PLM, reuse for regression, end-of-line, and in-service incident replay.
  

• Cert alignment: Build test artefacts regulators accept—DO-178C/254, SC-VTOL safety cases.

Beyond Lithium-Ion: Unlocking eVTOL Range with Lithium-Sulfur Crystal Batteries

Dr. Ulrich Ehmes, CEO, Theion

Theion’s crystal-structured lithium-sulfur (Li-S) concept targets step-change Wh/kg (claimed up to ~3× vs conventional Li-ion) with cobalt/nickel-free cathodes—promising lighter packs, lower cost, and new mission envelopes for eVTOL.

• Electrochem basics: How crystal Li-S cathodes and solid-state design drive energy density.
  

• Thermal & safety: Heat generation, TR risk profile, and high-power behavior for VTOL phases.
  

• Performance over life: Degradation modes, recharge efficiency, cycle/ calendar life for aviation duty.
  

• eVTOL fit: Pack-level implications—weight savings, C-rate, redundancy, and turnaround.
  

• Sustainability edge: No Co/Ni bill of materials; carbon footprint considerations.
  

• Certification hooks: Evidence needs vs DO-311A/DO-160, abuse tests, containment & venting.
  

• Path to market: Pilot programs, manufacturing scale-up, and operator trial frameworks.
  

• What to watch: Readiness indicators—cell specs, pack demos, and independent validation.

Lunch Networking Break

Ceramic Solid-State Batteries for eVTOL: Safer, Higher-Performance Energy Systems

Jacob Matly, Founder & CEO, Valcon Labs

Ceramic solid-state batteries (SSB) using oxide electrolytes such as LLZAO offer a step-change for aviation: non-flammable all-ceramic cells with higher specific energy and high C-rate charge/discharge that can eliminate complex liquid cooling—directly enabling longer range/reserve, tighter safety cases, and lower operational risk for eVTOL. Inherent thermal-runaway resistance and non-propagating failure modes simplify compliance with DO-311A/ED-287 at the pack level, while ceramic stacks support >800 V architectures with improved power delivery and thermal stability in lighter, less complex enclosures. Realizing these gains at aviation scale hinges on two bottlenecks: (1) mechanical stability of large-format, multilayer stacks under high-cycle, high-vibration flight, and (2) scalable fabrication of thin, defect-free solid-electrolyte separators, which drive energy density, cost, and throughput.

This session examines how next-gen ceramic SSB chemistries, interfaces, and manufacturing methods translate into certifiable, maintainable, high-performance eVTOL packs—what’s feasible today, the residual risks, and a pragmatic migration path from high-rate Li-ion to ceramic solid-state.

• Energy, power, and safety impacts of ceramic SSB chemistries on eVTOL mission profiles.

• Thermal runaway and propagation behavior, and how to design for compliance with DO-311A/ED-287.

• Manufacturing constraints—including sintering, stack pressure, moisture sensitivity, separator thickness control, and mechanical stability—and their implications for yield, cost, and certification.

• A realistic migration roadmap from today’s Li-ion systems to flight-ready ceramic SSB packs for next-generation eVTOL aircraft.

High-Angle AFP for eVTOL: OLI-Enabled Head for Complex, Small-Scale Aerostructures

Manu Motilva, Chief Growth Officer, Machines, MTorres

eVTOL programs push composite manufacturing toward smaller, highly contoured parts with tight radii and aggressive layup angles—beyond the comfort zone of legacy AFP/ATL heads. MTorres presents its high-angle eVTOL AFP head (≥ 40–45° clearance) with eight tows, a servo-driven rotary cutter (minimum cut length 100 mm), and integrated Online Inspection (OLI). Deployed on gantry or robot, the system targets 75–85% OEE with layup rates up to 7 kg/h—5–6× faster than hand layup—while safeguarding quality on small, complex geometries typical of eVTOL primary and secondary structures.

eVTOL airframes feature many small, complex composite details (doors, frames, ribs, fairings, winglets, boom/empennage sub-elements) where access and angle limit deposition quality and speed.

High-angle head geometry + OLI closes the gap between automotive-style takt expectations and aerospace quality, supporting repeatable, certifiable production.

• Select head geometry for small/complex parts: when and why ≥40–45° clearance is decisive.

• Program deposition strategies (steering, staggering, drops/adds) for eight-tow heads on tight contours with 100 mm cut constraints.

• Use OLI data to drive closed-loop quality (porosity/bridging, FOD, gaps/overlaps) and boost OEE to 75–85%

• Compare cells: robot vs. gantry for eVTOL parts—footprint, reach, stiffness, cycle time, and re-teaching trade-offs.

• Quantify ROI vs. hand layup: process capability indices, rework rates, and 7 kg/h throughput modeling.

MagLev-Electric Propulsion: A New Architecture for Quiet, Efficient Vertical Flight

Ian Randall, Founder & CEO, Maglev Aero

As eVTOL propulsion systems evolve beyond ducted fans and distributed electric drives, magnetically-levitated (maglev) rim-driven systems are emerging as a disruptive alternative, offering ultra-smooth, low-vibration operation, that delivers more thrust for less power and noise in sustained vertical and cruise phases of flight.  This session examines how maglev-based propulsion redefines performance, acoustics, reliability and operational impact for eVTOL and hybrid-electric aircraft.

• Unified Drive Architecture: Integration of motor, inverter, bearing, and fan merges the best of aerodynamic and electromagnetic design, delivering step-change improvements in efficiency and acoustic performance.

• AI-Enhanced Design Optimization: Advanced multiphysics modeling and AI-driven optimization tools accelerate design cycles, refine magnetic and aerodynamic geometries, and enable scalable product development across thrust classes.

• Applications and Scalability: From kilowatt to megawatt, flexible maglev-propulsion architectures support modular lift and cruise configurations for distributed electric and hybrid aircraft.

• Operational Impact: Reduced power draw, increased useful load, lower maintenance cycles, quieter operation, and smoother transitions between hover and forward flight.

High-Fidelity CFD Methods for Quadcopter Propulsion–Fuselage Interaction

Jeff Collins, Staff Engineer, SimuTech Group

Capturing rotor–airframe coupling is key to performance, control authority, and cert evidence. This session shows how to push Ansys Fluent with 6-DOF motion, Virtual Blade Model (VBM), overset meshes, and UDFs to model take-off and acceleration accurately.

• 6-DOF dynamics: Set up true take-off/acceleration simulations.
  

• Prop–body coupling: Use VBM + overset meshing to resolve fan–fuselage interactions.
  

• Extend Fluent: Apply UDFs for custom motion, controls, and force models.
  

• Validate & tune: Correlate with test data; sensitivity to grid/time-step settings.
  

• Speed vs fidelity: When to use VBM vs resolved blades; cost/performance trade-offs.

• Actionable workflow: A ready-to-adopt setup template for eVTOL/drone studies.

Choosing the Right Battery Partner: Powering the Future of eVTOL

Shana Tischler, Head of Sales, Drones, UAM, and Robotics, SES AI

Metal Replacement for Next-Generation Battery Enclosures: Composite and Modular Solutions for eVTOL Platforms

Arash Jahangir, SVP Business Development, AirGo

Unlocking Efficient and Reliable eVTOL Performance: Using Best-in-Class Semiconductor Solutions

Steven Ohanesian, Director of Business Development, Infineon Technologies

 Afternoon Break

Hosted By

From Model to Mission — Flight Controls, System ID, and Autonomy

George Jacobellis, Head of Flight Sciences, AIBOT

AIBOT walks through the end-to-end pipeline for an autonomous, tilt-wing eVTOL: from modeling and system identification (SID) to flight-control design and mission execution. Using the T500 uncrewed tilt-wing, eight-rotor platform as a case study, the session details how NASA-style SID methods were applied to real flight-test data to refine aero-propulsive models and optimize control laws—accelerating readiness for high-speed, high-reliability operations in public safety, logistics, and industrial missions.

• Design & validate an eVTOL SID campaign (orthogonal/multisine inputs) to produce frequency-domain models for hover–transition flight.
  

• Specify & tune tilt-wing control allocation and handling-quality targets across hover, transition, and wing-borne regimes.
  

• Integrate autonomy with flight-control models to meet public-safety, infrastructure, and emergency-response mission needs.
  

• Evaluate Phase-II flight-test data and plan envelope expansion that translates into production-intent configurations and airworthiness evidence.
  

• Communicate technical outcomes (performance, transition smoothness) via a focused demo/exhibit briefing that aligns stakeholders on operational value.

Thermal Management in UAV and eVTOL Batteries: Preventing Hot Spots, Extending Life, and Enhancing Safety

Bret Trimmer, Application Engineering Manager, NeoGraf Solutions

Thermal control dictates range, life, and safety. This session turns materials-led and hybrid cooling into cert-ready designs—showing how graphite spreaders, TIMs, and targeted active cooling eliminate hot spots, slow degradation, and contain events.

• Why thermals matter: Cell temp spread → power fade, aging, and TR risk.
  

• Choose the approach: Passive vs active vs hybrid—weight, complexity, performance.
  

• Materials in action: SpreaderShield™ graphite, HiTherm™ TIMs, NeoNxGen® for hotspot control & propagation resistance.
  

• Case lessons: Ag UAVs (sustained power), delivery UAVs (lightweight hybrids), and scaling to eVTOL duty cycles.
  

• Design details: Vent paths, sensor placement, and turnaround heat removal for fast charging.
  

• Evidence & cert: Test matrices (cell→module→pack), TR containment demos, DO-160/DO-311A hooks.
  

• Maintainability: Service-friendly interfaces (blind-mate coolant), leak detection, and health monitoring.

Redefining Connectivity for Next-Generation eVTOL Platforms

Eric Weingartner, Sr. Manager of Product Management, TE Connectivity

This session will explore TE’s latest innovations, including small, light-weight power switching solutions utilizing solid state and electro-mechanical technology, anti-fretting connectors, shape-optimized power cables, and “follow-the-wire” methodology for system-level optimization to enable certification-ready eVTOL designs.

• Understand how advanced power switching technology enhances load handling performance at high voltage.

• Explore power and data interconnect solutions optimized for high-voltage aviation requirements.

• Gain insight into SWaP-focused design strategies to maximize performance while minimizing weight and space.

• Learn how “follow-the-wire” methodologies improve safety, reliability, and maintenance efficiency.

• Assess how interconnect innovations are enabling certification and scalable production of eVTOL aircraft.

Airspace Integration for eVTOL Operations: Managing Traffic Complexity and Scaling Solutions

Pedro Macedo, Aviation Consulting, Lufthansa Consulting

This session will explore the operational and regulatory hurdles of integrating eVTOLs into existing airspace, and the emerging solutions—including geofencing, dedicated corridors, remote vertiport networks, and dynamic traffic management systems—that are being developed to support safe and scalable adoption.

• Airspace Design Challenges: Interfacing eVTOL flight patterns with conventional air traffic around high-density airports.
  

• Routing and Safety: Strategies to avoid conflicts, manage separation, and maintain resilience in complex operational environments.
  

• Geofencing & Corridors: How controlled airspace zones and dedicated aerial highways can simplify traffic flows.
  

• Remote Vertiport Networks: Linking distributed vertiports into wider traffic management frameworks.
  

• Dynamic Traffic Systems: Leveraging AI and real-time data to build adaptive traffic control for high-frequency urban eVTOL operations.

Scaling Autonomous Cargo eVTOL Operations: FAA Progress, BVLOS Expansion, and Commercial Applications

Manal Habib, CEO and Aerospace Engineer , MightyFly

Cargo is the fastest on-ramp for autonomous eVTOL operations—fewer passenger constraints, higher risk tolerance, and clearer logistics ROI. This session maps the practical path from today’s flight trials to scalable, revenue-generating networks: current FAA initiatives, BVLOS rulemaking and waivers, DAA/C2 approvals, ground ops standardization, and the commercial routes where autonomy pencils out first.

• Regulatory runway: How near-term FAA pathways (waivers, exemptions, type/production cert building blocks, 135 approvals) unlock autonomous cargo at scale—what’s approved vs. what still needs data.
  

• BVLOS at scale: Architectures for Detect-and-Avoid (onboard + network), C2 link assurance, and CONOPS that meet corridor and contingency requirements.
  

• Operational economics: Dispatch reliability, pad/turn time, weather minima, battery cycle life, and cost-per-ton-mile—how to hit 85–90% availability.
  

• Safety case packaging: Data packages, FOQA/FRMS for autonomous ops, and how to convert pilot programs into repeatable approvals.
  

Commercial beachheads: Middle-mile logistics, medical/critical spares, offshore/remote resupply, defense dual-use—what routes and partners de-risk first deployments? el shifts, utilization gains, and new service lines (cargo/regional/urban).

Vertipads: Engineering, Safety & ROI for Real-World AAM

Clem Newton-Brown, CEO & Founder, Skyportz

Justin Wiley, Strategy & Development, UC Berkeley ITS

The technical realities—downwash/outwash, fire safety, noise, and community license—are colliding with hard questions about who funds, builds, and operates the first wave of pads. This session reframes “vertiports as infrastructure” into “vertipads as an investable product.”

• Challenges of urban vertiports – Downwash/outwash, fire, noise,  and safety considerations.

• Breaking up vortices – Explanation of the patented design and how it mitigates downwash and outwash.

• Noise and community licence – Disrupting windspeeds and the flow on benefits for noise amelioration.

• Fire safety  – The “dunk tank” suppression systems to halt thermal runaway.

• The role of the property industry – The need for a minimum viable product to secure a multitude of vertipads.

• Who pays and is there a ROI? -Is there money to be made from building and operating vertiports?

• The cautionary tale – The Segway scooter failure. Awesome tech but a commercial flop

• IP for free – Collaboration opportunities for test beds, OEMS and early adopters.  First USA site announced.

Next-Gen Pilots: eVTOL User Acceptance Across Diverse Pilot Demographics

Anna Golendukhina, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

As Advanced Air Mobility rapidly advances, pilot readiness and acceptance will influence how seamlessly eVTOL operations scale into the national airspace. This presentation delivers new insights from Embry-Riddle research examining how pilots from varied experience levels perceive autonomy, transfer traditional skills into advanced eVTOL flight profiles, and prepare for operational transition.

• Acceptance and trust in autonomous flight control capabilities

• Skill transferability for advanced eVTOL maneuvers (precision landing, hover-transition, mid-air repositioning)

• Preferred training pathways and willingness to operate eVTOL technology

• Tailored curriculum design for diverse pilot backgrounds

• User-centric training strategies to sustain motivation and ensure smooth workforce integration

Insights from this study support safer certification, informed training investments, and improved pilot onboarding as OEMs and operators build the next generation of urban air mobility operations.

Closing Remarks

All Attendee Drinks Party