OTTO AVIATION OFFICIALLY INTRODUCES CELERA 500L

On Wednesday 26 August, Otto Aviation officially unveiled its Celera 500L clean-sheet passenger aircraft, stating that its full-scale prototype has already completed 31 successful test flights.

According to the company, based in California in the USA, the Celera will offer an 80 percent reduction in carbon emissions compared with a similar business aircraft. In addition to passenger travel, Otto is marketing the aircraft for cargo and military applications.

“Our goal was to create a private aircraft that would allow for direct flights between any city pair in the US at speeds and cost comparable with commercial air travel,” said Otto Aviation chairman and chief scientist William Otto Sr. “Since the results from our prototype test flights have been so promising, we are ready to bring the Celera 500L to market.”

The Celera 500L prototype was spotted undergoing taxi testing in June 2019 after over a decade of quiet development.The six-passenger aircraft is expected to have a top cruise speed of 460 MPH, 4,500-NM range, fuel economy of 18 to 25 miles per gallon and glide ratio of 22:1. The all-composite Celera is powered by the RED A03 engine, which is certified to operate on Jet A1 and biodiesel. Otto projects that the model’s hourly operating costs will come in at around $328.

RED A03 engine

Located in Adenau, Germany, RED offers a full range of engineering services required for engine and powertrain development. All products are designed, tested and produced in-house, starting from a clean sheet of paper, by highly skilled and experienced specialists.

The RED A03 is a lightweight, all-aluminium, compression-ignition, internal combustion 12-cylinder engine in 80° V configuration with two six-cylinder banks capable of independent operation. The production facility is comprehensively equipped with state-of-the-art machining equipment and fully supported by a quality assurance system. The RED production system ensures lean manufacturing of extremely complex components with outstanding precision and repeatability.

Development and Testing

RED’s state-of-the-art test cells provide the perfect test environment for the complete engine, powertrains and engine sub module testing. RED’s engineers are skilled to perform the development and test activities, tailored to the aviation requirements, engine performance optimisation and durability of an engine throughout its development. RED has developed its proprietary family of functionalities and associated support tools, which include: FADEC, fully certified to DAL-B standard. Engine simulation unit, which allows customers to evaluate engine performance throughout the entire operating envelope. Maintenance Tool, providing real-time live monitoring of engine parameters and allowing for predictive scheduling of maintenance.

Celera 500L top view

According to company officials, designed to run off standard 12 volts, the instruments are exceedingly thin and very lightweight, designed for installation in experimental and ultralight aircraft.

“We started our instrumentation offerings over 10 years ago

with this type of small, lightweight instrument.

Now we are bringing it back with the benefit of many years

of experience in developing aircraft instrumentation,”

said James Wiebe, President/CEO of Radiant Technology.

The square instruments

Shipping will begin in September, but orders can be made now, according to Wiebe. Retail prices start at $139 and up, depending on variation. Sale prices for August orders are $30 off the retail price.