Another personal eVTOL, cops flying BVLOS, military drones with facial recognition, a lethal drone designed in Australia, the Lilium Jet eVTOL, and moving air quietly.

ZEVA Aero designs and builds electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) vehicles. The company’s flagship product is the Argon, based on a pre-existing airframe. But their Zero is a personal eVTOL for one person. It launches with the pilot standing, but the position is prone in horizontal flight. The 8-foot-wide flying saucer-shaped aircraft uses 8 propellers and is expected to cost $250,000.

A one-eighth-scale model has been flight-tested and tethered tests are underway with a full-sized prototype. Zeva says the prototype should be ready for remote-controlled flights within a month, and tests with a pilot could take place in three to six months.

Video: ZEVA 1/8 Scale Model flying

The Chula Vista, California police department operates 29 drones. The program runs 10 hours a day, seven days a week using four launch sites. Officers routinely request aerial reconnaissance. More than 1,500 U.S. police departments use drones, mostly for search and rescue, to document crime scenes, and to chase suspects. About 225 police departments have FAA waivers to fly BVLOS. Privacy and civil liberty groups are taking notice.

The U.S. Air Force plans to deploy facial recognition technology on drones. RealNetworks LLC has the contract to supply its SAFR technology on small drones used for special operations missions. RealNetworks says SAFR Scan is “the first full-featured intelligent biometric access controlled edge solution.”

BAE Systems Australia unveiled the armed STRIX VTOL at Avalon 2023. It’s a hybrid, tandem wing, multi-domain and multi-role UAS that could be used for air-to-ground strike, persistent ISR, and as a loyal wingman for military helicopters. It can carry up to a 160kg payload over 800km with a variety of munitions. The collapsed footprint is only 2.6m x 4.5m (roughly 8.5 x 15 feet).

Vertical flight takes a lot of energy and most eVTOL designs