Flying Whales

EN Texto em inglês Ainda não há artigo no teu idioma: trecho em inglês.

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. Founded in 2012 by Sébastien Bougon, this project was initially dedicated to wood exploitation in partnership with the Office National des Forêts (ONF), the French organization in charge of public forest management. The project was developed during a pre-study phase from 2013 to 2016. It was selected as one of the 34 plans under the Nouvelle France Industrielle program launched on September 12, 2013. 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 an airship. Originally announced for 2020, in 2024, the company projected that the prototype would be ready in 2028. After the Canadian federal government blocked Quebec's participation in the project due to partial Chinese ownership of the company, Flying Whales organized a buyout of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC)'s 25% stake in September 2021. 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 other 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.