Lilium Completes First High-Voltage Electrical Harnesses for Revolutionary eVTOL Jet

Lilium Completes First High-Voltage Electrical Harnesses for Revolutionary eVTOL Jet

(IN BRIEF) Lilium N.V., the developer of the groundbreaking all-electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) jet, has achieved a significant milestone by completing the first high-voltage electrical harnesses for the Lilium Jet. This achievement, achieved through a collaboration with GKN Aerospace, a partner for electrical wiring integration, and connector supplier Rosenberger Group, is a crucial step towards the assembly, industrialization, and deployment of the Lilium Jet. The high-voltage electrical harnesses are a key component of the aircraft’s safety-critical power distribution system. These harnesses consolidate a system of cables into a single secure sleeve, ensuring protection, space optimization, and simplified installation. They will serve as the aircraft’s primary electrical arteries, delivering power from the ten batteries situated on the fuselage’s sides to the jet propulsion units embedded in the main wings and canards. The harnesses have been engineered to be lightweight while delivering high performance, supporting a voltage exceeding 900 V. Lilium’s Chief Operating Officer, Yves Yemsi, emphasized the collaboration with established aerospace suppliers, highlighting its efficiency in advancing the aircraft development program. This achievement brings electric aviation a step closer to becoming a reality, with partners like GKN Aerospace and Rosenberger contributing their expertise to Lilium’s vision of sustainable regional aviation.

(PRESS RELEASE) REDDITCH, 13-Oct-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — Lilium N.V. (NASDAQ: LILM), developer of the first all-electric vertical take-off and landing (“eVTOL”) jet, announced that the first high-voltage electrical harnesses for the Lilium Jet have been completed. The announcement marks another important achievement on the path to first assembly, industrialization, and entry into service of the revolutionary Lilium Jet.

A collaboration between Lilium, its design and build partner for electrical wiring integration, GKN Aerospace, and connector supplier, Rosenberger Group, the high voltage electrical harnesses represent a critical system on the Lilium Jet. The harness system, for which Lilium has been granted patents in the U.S. and Europe, is essential for the Lilium Jet’s safety critical power distribution architecture. An electrical harness is a system of cables bundled into a single secure sleeve to protect, optimize space and simplify installation. Designed for safety and redundancy, the harnesses will act as the aircraft’s main electrical arteries, distributing power from the ten batteries, located on the sides of the fuselage, to the jet propulsion units, embedded into the aircraft’s main wings and canards. The harness system has been optimized for high performance at low weight enabling a voltage of more than 900 V.

Yves Yemsi, COO of Lilium, commented: “We are delighted with the progress made in building this section of the electrical wiring system. Today’s milestone again confirms our approach of partnering with established aerospace suppliers for an efficient aircraft development program”.”

John Pritchard, President of Civil Airframe at GKN Aerospace commented: “This collaboration has enabled us to leverage and build on the capabilities of each company. We are proud that our electrical wiring systems technology, our design expertise and our ability to manufacture at scale is helping Lilium make sustainable regional aviation a reality.

Marc Käumle, Executive Vice President Business Area Interconnect, Rosenberger said: “Electric aviation is on its way, and we are pleased to be a part of it. We have been designing and manufacturing connectors and cable assemblies over many years for a variety of aviation applications. We look forward to extending our capabilities into the eVTOL space as part of the Lilium Jet team.

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SOURCE: GKN plc.