ODYS AVIATION, INC. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: X224-OCSO1

Description

The HH-60G Pavehawk is the air vehicle of choice for Combat Search and Rescue (CSAR) missions but is outdated and does not provide the capabilities necessary for a fight in the Pacific. “Military leaders have been concerned for more than a decade that their current dedicated CSAR helicopter, the HH-60G, does not have all of capabilities needed for the mission. It had deficiencies in speed, range, cabin space, survivability, battlespace awareness, and all-weather operability” reports Air Force Magazine (2021). Odys Aviation, Inc. (Odys) seeks to solve this problem with our novel hybrid electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, known as the Slipstream. The Slipstream is runway independent, transports 9 passengers or 2,500 pounds of payload (+ 2 pilots), cruises at 345 mph up to 1,000 miles, and can be operated autonomously or remotely. We are on mission to not only revolutionize commercial regional travel, but also deliver war-winning capabilities for our operators.  We believe the Slipstream’s runway independent design provides the warfighter with unparalleled mission flexibility, while maximizing safety and improving fleet resiliency through our unique Hybrid-Electric Distributed Propulsion Architecture  – the focus of this Phase I effort. In this Phase I, Odys will work to study the adaption, integration, and enhancement of Odys’s hybrid eVTOL system to propel the AF’s CSAR mission needs. Specifically, Odys will conduct customer discovery with the AFLCMC and SOF end users in mixed wing squadrons.  The specific USAF customer for Phase II is anticipated to be AFLCMC with end users in CV-22 and U-28A maintenance squadrons. Odys engineers will determine the degree of adaption required to meet the needs of the AF end user and the best test program for demonstrating our novel distributed propulsion architecture for next-gen platforms using hybrid propulsion systems.