Flying Whales
| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Founded | 20 September 2012  |
| Founder | Sébastien Bougon |
| Headquarters | , France |
| Revenue | 416,700 Euro (2019) |
| Website | fr |
Flying Whales is a French aeronautic start-up developing an airship designed to be an environmentally-friendly solution for transporting heavy loads, such as wood logs or specific gear like wind-turbine blades, without ground-based infrastructure.[1]
History
[edit]Founded in 2012 by Sébastien Bougon, this project was initially dedicated to wood exploitation in partnership with the French organization in charge of public forest management, the Office National des Forêts (ONF).
The French government and the regional government of Nouvelle-Aquitaine have invested €90 million in the company, which as of May 2024 had not produced a single airship. Originally announced for 2020, the company projects that the prototype will be ready in 2028.[2]
After the Canadian federal government blocked Quebec's participation in the project due to this partial Chinese ownership of the company, Flying Whales organized a buyout of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC)'s 25% stake in September 2021.[3]
In July 2022, the company announced that it had raised 122 million euros to finalize the development of the LCA60T. Investors in this round include the Government of France via the French public investment bank Bpifrance, as part of the France 2030 program designed to revive the French industrial sector.The others investors are the Principality of Monaco with the Société Nationale de Financement, as well as Air Liquide's ALIAD venture capital fund, the Groupe ADP and Société Générale Assurances.[4]
The LCA60T
[edit]Conceived as a means of transport to open up certain regions inaccessible by road, the LCA60T could be sized as the largest aircraft in activity, with 200 meters long and 50 meters high, according to its CEO Sébastien Bougon.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Chang, Brittany (6 September 2020). "French company Flying Whales is creating an airship that can pickup and drop cargo without landing — see how". Business Insider. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
- ^ Koch, Marjolaine (3 May 2024). "Flying Whales : 90 millions d'euros d'argent public investis et toujours aucun prototype de dirigeable". Radio France (Cash Investigation) (in French). France TV Info.
- ^ Rolland, Stéphane (21 October 2021). "Flying Whales veut relancer ses projets au Québec". La Presse.
- ^ "FLYING WHALES grabs €122 million to create low-carbon cargo transport solution". Tech.eu. 8 July 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ Morin, Philippe (4 April 2021). "Giant airship project, touted as solution to remote shipping, 'on track' says company". CBC News.
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