Lufthansa Group and Lilium are exploring a partnership around electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two.
The companies will look at ground and flight operations, future aircraft maintenance and crew and flight training to uncover opportunities. They also want to assess scope for collaboration with third parties, such as airports, for the development of infrastructure such as vertiports and airspace integration.
“Innovation is part of our DNA. The Lufthansa Group aspires to be a global leader in the integration of state-of-the-art products and processes,” said Detlef Kayser, a member of Lufthansa Group's executive board, responsible for fleet and technology.
“We want to develop aviation further and drive the transformation of the industry. This Memorandum of Understanding with Lilium will make an important contribution to this. Only with innovation, courage and determination can we, as an industry, make aviation more sustainable and master the challenges of the future.”
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Lufthansa has said it aims to cut net carbon emissions by half by 2030 as part of its drive to become carbon neutral by 2050.
Klaus Roewe, CEO of Lilium, added: “The Lufthansa Group has been at the forefront of some of Europe’s most important aviation initiatives, especially in the area of environmental sustainability. We are thrilled to explore opportunities on bringing eVTOL flights to Lufthansa Group customers.”
Lilium has begun production of its Lilium Jet and has projected demand for more than 9,000 eVTOL aircraft by the end of 2035 in Europe.
Earlier this year, Lilium managed to avoid a delisting from Nasdaq with an investment of $192 million made up of the sale of shares, venture capital and an investment from Tencent's Aceville.