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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesVertical Aerospace says its chief test pilot completed a continuous flight that took off vertically, transitioned to wingborne cruise, then transitioned back for a vertical landing. The flight took place on 14 April 2026; the company announced it on 16 April. The milestone demonstrates a key part of the flight sequence planned for its Valo aircraft, but it does not mean Valo is certified or ready for passenger service.
What happened on the flight?
Vertical Aerospace says Chief Test Pilot Simon Davies completed the two-way piloted transition flight on 14 April 2026. In one continuous sequence, the aircraft took off vertically, accelerated into wingborne cruise, decelerated, and returned to a vertical landing. The announcement came two days later, on 16 April. Vertical Aerospace’s announcement is the primary source for the event and its characterization.
A two-way transition means the aircraft demonstrated both sides of the change in flight mode in a single flight: from thrustborne vertical flight to wingborne flight, then back to thrustborne flight for landing. Vertical describes its aircraft as a tiltrotor eVTOL, designed to use propellers for vertical lift and its wing for lift in cruise.
Why does a two-way transition matter?
Transition is a central engineering challenge for a tiltrotor eVTOL. The aircraft must change from propeller-generated lift to wingborne flight while accelerating, then reverse that process while slowing down. Demonstrating the return to vertical landing matters because an outbound transition alone would not establish that the aircraft completed the full takeoff-to-landing sequence described for the service concept.
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For Vertical, the intended benefit is passenger flight that can take off and land vertically rather than requiring a conventional runway. This test flight is evidence of a development milestone, not proof of commercial readiness, passenger operations, or certification.
How this fits Vertical’s flight-test programme
Vertical’s 2025 materials describe a piloted programme with four phases. The company said the first three were complete by September 2025; its April 2026 flights then began demonstrating transition between thrustborne and wingborne flight. The company’s account of the preceding thrustborne transition says that flight occurred on 2 April 2026 and moved from vertical takeoff into wingborne flight before landing on a runway.
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| Phase | What it covers | Status described by Vertical |
|---|---|---|
| Tethered hover | Hovering while tethered. | Among the first three phases the company said were complete by September 2025. |
| Thrustborne flight | Vertical takeoff and landing, plus low-speed manoeuvres. | Among the first three phases the company said were complete by September 2025. |
| Wingborne flight | Flight in which the wing provides lift. | Among the first three phases the company said were complete by September 2025. |
| Transition | Changing between thrustborne and wingborne flight. | Vertical announced a one-way thrustborne transition flight on 6 April 2026, based on the 2 April flight, then the two-way flight on 16 April. |
What does the regulatory oversight claim mean?
Vertical says the April 14 flight took place under UK Civil Aviation Authority oversight and under the company’s Design Organisation Approval. The company also says the CAA is working with EASA toward Valo type certification. That describes the stated test and regulatory context; it is not a type certificate, nor does it establish that certification has been granted.
Vertical calls the flight the second globally in a full-scale tiltrotor eVTOL and says it was the first such flight under civil aviation Design Organisation Approval oversight. Those rankings are the company’s claims; no independent confirmation of the global comparison is established by the cited announcement. The CEO’s description of the milestone as the most significant technical achievement in the company’s history is likewise an executive characterization, not an independent technical assessment.
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What remains before Valo could enter service?
Vertical says the next certification stage includes a critical design review, at which the aircraft design is locked, followed by construction of seven pre-production Valo aircraft for compliance and verification testing with the CAA and EASA. The seven-aircraft figure is a stated company plan, and 2028 is its target for certification—not a completed or guaranteed date. Vertical said entry into service was expected shortly after certification.
Vertical also gave Canary Wharf–Heathrow and JFK–Manhattan as examples of intended routes. These are service concepts, not operating routes or announced schedules.
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What Valo’s published numbers do—and do not—show
Vertical lists design figures of up to 100 miles of range and up to 150 mph. These are manufacturer specifications, not performance results established by the transition flight. The company also reported approximately 1,500 pre-orders, noting that some customer obligations are expected to be fulfilled through third parties. A pre-order figure is not the same as an order book of firm aircraft purchases.
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