Beta Technologies showed off its MV250 at the Farnborough air show. (Breaking Defense)
FARNBOROUGH — American electric aircraft-maker BETA Technologies this week unveiled a militarized, unmanned version of its all-electric, vertical takeoff and landing A250, modified with a new hybrid-electric powertrain that company executives say can meet the demanding needs of defense missions.
Joined by industry heavyweights GE Aerospace for propulsion and Lockheed Martin subsidiary Sikorsky for autonomy, BETA expects the new MV250 aircraft can be ready for military exercises next year and enter production as soon as 2028, according to a company factsheet.
“The first principle physics of our airplane is rooted in simplicity. If we keep it light, low drag, high energy content on the airplane and extremely high propulsive efficiency, it achieves […] high speed, long range, [and] carr[ies] a lot of payload,” BETA CEO Kyle Clark said in a briefing with reporters at the Farnborough Airshow here on Tuesday. “That’s what the customer cares about.”
BETA is pitching the aircraft for a wide range of missions spanning logistics, reconnaissance and strike. The company says it has a range of 1,300 nautical miles (nearly 1,500 miles) when configured for missions like reconnaissance, and carry up to 2,000 pounds of payload. BETA’s Rob Dickerson, who works in government and military business development for the company, pegged its price tag at “less than $10 million,” where economies of scale could offer room for improvement.
