Surf Air Mobility and Azul Conecta Enter Agreement to Incorporate Electric Powertrains into Azul’s Cessna Caravan Fleet
November 27 2023 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Collaboration highlights include:
- Identify the necessary prerequisites for development of Surf
Air Mobility’s proprietary technology in Brazil
- Conduct a technical exchange on the Brazilian regulatory and
infrastructural requirements to operate an aircraft with electric
powertrain
- Seek to understand how electric powertrain can be applied to
Azul Conecta’s Cessna Caravan aircraft and operations
- Seek to implement electric powertrains in Azul’s existing
Cessna Caravan aircraft
Surf Air Mobility Inc. (NYSE: SRFM) (“Surf Air Mobility”), the
air mobility platform transforming regional flying through
electrification, and Azul S.A. (B3: AZUL4, NYSE: AZUL) (“Azul”),
the largest airline in Brazil, have agreed to collaborate on the
commercial deployment of electric Cessna Caravan within Azul’s
existing fleet. By electrifying its Cessna Caravan fleet, Azul
believes they can take a meaningful step toward their goal of
net-zero carbon emissions by 2045. Surf Air Mobility is targeting
certification of its proprietary electrified powertrain in 2026 in
the U.S. In doing so, Azul and Surf Air Mobility hope to be a
catalyst for change within South America and global leaders in
regional air mobility (“RAM”).
The companies believe their shared vision for improving
aviation’s environmental impact positions them to accelerate
development and time to market of electric aircraft. By directly
collaborating on both the technical and regulatory specifications
of electric Cessna Caravan, the companies intend to create a
clearer pathway for certification of electrified aircraft within
Brazil.
“It’s important for Surf Air Mobility to develop our technology
with operators that will be the direct beneficiaries of the coming
transition to electrified aircraft. We’re very excited to work with
Azul to help us design our technology and define how our electric
powertrains can best be deployed within an existing regional
network in order for passengers to gain as much benefit from the
technology as possible,” said Stan Little, CEO of Surf Air
Mobility. “With Azul’s support, we believe we can further
accelerate the Supplemental Type Certification process and bring
the technology to market faster and with more certainty.”
Azul currently operates 27 Cessna Caravan 208 aircraft and over
than 80 destinations within Brazil. This agreement will help make
it possible to upgrade Azul’s existing aircraft with fully electric
powertrains once Surf Air Mobility’s proprietary technology is
developed and certified. Surf Air Mobility’s first generation fully
electric powertrain technology is targeted to reduce direct
operating costs by as much as 50% and eliminate 100% of direct
carbon emissions. These performance improvements can have profound
impacts on how Azul operates its Cessna Caravan network.
"It is with great pleasure that we receive the opportunity to
collaborate with Surf Air Mobility in the evolution of technology
for electrified aircraft. The partnership between the two companies
will be crucial for the successful development and implementation
of these innovations," highlights Flavio Costa, president of Azul
Conecta. "We look forward to working together, designing the
technology, and integrating our electric motors into our fleet in
an optimized way. We believe that with this agreement signed, we
can accelerate the certification process, ensuring a quicker and
safer introduction of this revolutionary technology to the market,
thereby positively transforming the future of the airline sector,"
adds the executive.
The companies believe fully electric Cessna Caravan have the
potential to meaningfully improve the economics of Azul’s existing
routes, eliminate direct emissions, and launch new routes that may
not be economically viable with traditional combustion
aircraft.
"We are particularly excited about the impact electric Cessna
Caravan could have on Azul’s potential ability to launch new routes
and address an even larger audience within Brazil,” said Jamie
Strecker, Head of Business Development for Surf Air Mobility.
About Surf Air Mobility
Surf Air Mobility is a Los Angeles, California, USA based
regional air mobility platform expanding the category of regional
air travel to reinvent flying through the power of electrification.
In an effort to substantially reduce the cost and environmental
impact of flying and as the operator of the largest commuter
airline in the US, Surf Air Mobility intends to develop powertrain
technology with its commercial partners to electrify existing
fleets and bring electrified aircraft to market at scale. The
management team has deep experience and expertise across aviation,
electrification, and consumer technology.
About Azul
Azul is the largest airline in Brazil in terms of departures and
cities served, with around 1,000 daily departures to 158
destinations, creating an unparalleled network of more than 300
non-stop routes as of December 31, 2022. For more information visit
https://ri.voeazul.com.br. Information on Azul's website does not
constitute a part of this press release.
Forward Looking Statements
The information in this press release includes “forward-looking
statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act
of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include, among
other things, statements about: Surf Air Mobility’s ability to
anticipate the future needs of the air mobility market; future
trends in the aviation industry, generally; Surf Air Mobility’s
future growth strategy and growth rate and its ability to access
its financings, grow its fleet. In some cases, you can identify
forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may”, “should”,
“could”, “might”, “plan”, “possible”, “project”, “strive”,
“budget”, “forecast”, “expect”, “intend”, “will”, “estimate”,
“anticipate”, “believe”, “predict”, “potential” or “continue”, or
the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar
terminology. Factors that may cause actual results to differ
materially from current expectations include, but are not limited
to: Surf Air Mobility’s future ability to pay contractual
obligations and liquidity will depend on operating performance,
cash flow and ability to secure adequate financing; Surf Air
Mobility’s limited operating history and that Surf Air Mobility has
not yet manufactured any hybrid-electric or fully-electric
aircraft; the powertrain technology Surf Air Mobility plans to
develop does not yet exist; the inability to maintain and
strengthen the Surf Air, Southern and Mokulele brands and their
reputations as regional airlines; any accidents or incidents
involving hybrid-electric or fully-electric aircraft; the inability
to accurately forecast demand for products and manage product
inventory in an effective and efficient manner; the dependence on
thirdparty partners and suppliers for the components and
collaboration in Surf Air Mobility’s development of hybrid-electric
and fully-electric powertrains, and any interruptions,
disagreements or delays with those partners and suppliers; the
inability to execute business objectives and growth strategies
successfully or sustain Surf Air Mobility’s growth; the inability
of Surf Air Mobility’s customers to pay for Surf Air Mobility’s
services; the inability of Surf Air Mobility to obtain additional
financing or access the capital markets to fund its ongoing
operations on acceptable terms and conditions; the outcome of any
legal proceedings that might be instituted against Surf Air,
Southern or Surf Air Mobility; changes in applicable laws or
regulations, and the impact of the regulatory environment and
complexities with compliance related to such environment; and other
risks and uncertainties indicated in the prospectus.
Forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates
of management at the date the statements are made and are subject
to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that
could cause actual events or results to differ materially from
those anticipated in the forward-looking statements. Although Surf
Air Mobility believes that the expectations reflected in the
forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no
assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Surf Air
Mobility cannot guarantee future results, level of activity,
performance or achievements and there is no representation that the
actual results achieved will be the same, in whole or in part, as
those set out in the forward-looking statements and financial
projections. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date
they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on
forward-looking statements, and Surf Air Mobility does not
undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, except as required by law. Additional information
regarding these and other factors that could affect Surf Air
Mobility’s results is included in Surf Air Mobility’s SEC filings,
which may be obtained by visiting the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov
or the investor relations page at https://investors.surfair.com
under the “Financials—SEC Filings” section. Information contained
on, or that is referenced or can be accessed through, our website
does not constitute part of this document and inclusions of any
website addresses herein are inactive textual references only. The
SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or the investor relations page on Surf
Air’s website at https://investors.surfair.com under the
“Financials—SEC Filings” section. Other information contained on,
or that is referenced or can be accessed through, our website does
not constitute part of this document and inclusions of any website
addresses herein are inactive textual references only.
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Surf Air Mobility: press@surfair.com
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