Moya Aero’s Bold Move: Middle-Mile eVTOL Drone Market

Game-Changing Partnership for Middle-Mile eVTOL

Moya Aero, a Brazilian drone manufacturer, is making headlines with its plan to enter the middle-mile EVTOL drone market. The company has reportedly partnered with Aeromot to develop drones capable of tackling challenging terrains, like the Amazon rainforest and offshore oil rigs.

First Test Flight Success

In November 2023, Moya Aero successfully conducted the first flight of its subscale heavy-lift eVTOL prototype near São José dos Campos, São Paulo. The five-minute hover flight was a significant milestone in Moya’s journey towards certification and commercial deployment of its drones.

Design of the Moya Cargo Drone

The Moya eVTOL is an autonomous, electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) heavy-lift cargo drone. Its airframe is made of carbon fiber composite materials.

The drone has a tandem tilt-wing configuration with four propellers and four electric motors. It is powered by batteries developed in-house by Moya Aero, along with motors produced by T-Motors.

The eVTOL takes off and lands with the fuselage nearly parallel to the ground. Once in flight, the wings tilt and the aircraft flies with its fuselage at an angle to enable efficient forward flight.

The drone has fixed tricycle wheeled landing gear[1]. Its bold design allows adaptations for different missions like cargo delivery to remote areas and agricultural crop spraying.

Moya claims their eVTOL’s payload capacity is 10 times greater than current small conventional drones. For agricultural applications, it can spray 6 times more area per hour with greater precision.

The Moya eVTOL cargo drone has an innovative tandem tilt-wing design optimized for vertical takeoff and landing as well as efficient forward flight. Its large size and payload capacity set it apart from smaller conventional drones, enabling new logistics and agricultural applications.

Specs and Capabilities

The production version of the Moya’s eVTOL cargo drone is planned to have the following specifications:

• Total length: 5.1 m (16.7 ft)
• Height: 1.8 m (5.9 ft)
• Front wing span: 7.1 m (23.3 ft)
• Rear wing span: 7.4 m (24.2 ft)
• Maximum payload: 200 kg (441 lb)
• Liquid payload volume: 550 liters (145 gal)
• Cruise speed: 150 km/h (93 mph)
• Range: 300 km (186 mi)
• Flight time: 42 minutes

The drone features tandem tilt-wings, four propellers, and battery power, making it a robust solution for middle-mile cargo delivery.

Targeting Remote and Challenging Regions

With Aeromot’s collaboration, Moya aims to revolutionize cargo transport in Brazil’s remote areas. Their focus on the middle-mile segment means their drones will bridge the gap between distribution centers and retail stores or fulfillment centers, enhancing supply chain efficiency in hard-to-reach locations.

Industry Context

The middle-mile cargo drone market is growing, with several companies globally developing autonomous eVTOL drones for this purpose. Moya Aero’s innovative approach and strategic partnership place it as a promising player in this competitive field.

DroneXL’s Take

Moya Aero’s move into the middle-mile eVTOL market is a bold step that could transform logistics in Brazil’s remote regions. By leveraging Aeromot’s expertise and their own innovative technology, Moya is set to address significant logistical challenges. This partnership highlights the potential of drones to improve efficiency and connectivity in hard-to-reach areas, reaffirming the transformative power of Drone Technology in modern logistics.