Exploration of Design Drivers for the RVLT Lift+Cruise Reference Aircraft

A trade study was performed on an all-electric version of the Lift+Cruise urban air mobility reference aircraft developed under the Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology Project. The trade study varied the input parameters of mission range, takeoff altitude, mission reserve time, cell specific energy, disk loading, and payload weight. A step-by-step incremental change in the input parameters was also examined. Analyses were performed using the NASA Design and Analysis of Rotorcraft tool and a Rapid Sizing Tool for electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. A comparison of the analysis results between the two tools shows good agreement in trends with differences in slope. Overall, the analysis shows that the Lift+Cruise configuration performs poorly on a NASA-defined, energy-dominated mission due to poor aerodynamic efficiency in forward flight. This poor cruise-flight efficiency results in a large energy requirement, which increases the required battery sizing and corresponding aircraft gross weight. As such, continued conceptual design and refinement of the Lift+Cruise reference aircraft by the RVLT Concepts Team will likely be limited.