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Old July 5th 17, 07:21 AM posted to rec.aviation.piloting
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Default Lilium Aviation flies prototype of its 160-knot all-electric VTOL

Lilium has a brilliant design.


On Wednesday, April 26, 2017 at 10:51:04 AM UTC-5, Larry Dighera wrote:
snip
They call it a “jet” but it’s powered by 36 electric-powered ducted fans...


Terminology is needing to be re-looked at. 'Ducted Fan' is a standard term.. And the word 'jet' has a very specific meaning to most people. Lilium is clearly working to broaden the more typical understanding of what 'jet' means so that this word encompasses ducted fans. It is obvious that the company is driven by innovation. And perhaps innovation with terminology would be a good approach here. Instead of bending words, we could invent a new one. If Lilium feels that 'ducted fan' is not a strong enough term to convey the character of their engines, we could call them something else. One idea would be:

- Jet Fan.

The 'jet' part conveys power that is stronger than a regular propeller, and
the 'fan' part conveys that the essential design is that of a ducted fan.

So 'jet fan' could be a new term that would be used for ducted fans that are in a thrust category that sets them apart from more typical ducted fans.


And there is an even more important term that needs to be re-looked at:

VTOL.

Helicopters are VTOL aircraft. Quadcopters are VTOLs. But there is a special subcategory of VTOLs that have a much greater efficiency in speed and range. This is VTOL aircraft that can cruise horizontally with wing lift used to efficiently overcome gravity rather than rotor lift or jet lift. This category includes aircraft such as the AV-8 Harrier, the V-22 Osprey and the F-35. Because this group of aircraft has such strong advantages over VTOL aircraft that are not capable of horizontal cruise (using wing lift), it would be very helpful to have a special term for this group. One idea here would be:

- VTOL/HC, or VerToLHoC (pronounced 'VertolHawk')

Vertical
TakeOff &
Landing /
Horizontal
Cruise

So using these two terms, the Lilium aircraft can be concisely described as a:

- Jet Fan Vertolhoc.


I see that to be far more descriptive than to call it a "VTOL jet".
I don't know how well this post would translate into German, but I hope that the company considers the merits of those who make suggestions like these..

Lilium is an amazingly impressive company, considering how much they have accomplished in such a short timespan and with just a small group of engineers. This company's efforts fit very well with the legacy that Otto Lilienthal started in Germany. Having pioneered heavier than air flight, Germany is a fitting place for flying cars to come into their own.

This is a vision that was popularized by The Jetsons. And Lilium has taken some very impressive steps toward making this our reality.

My understanding is that the company name is a tribute to Otto Lilienthal, along with Litium Ion battery technology. Taken together, there is a hybrid meaning in the name which is the reason for the flower logo.

Calling their aircraft a 'Jet Fan Vertolhoc' is a mouthful. So another tribute can be used to help communicate more clearly and concisely. A 'JFV' aircraft can be referred to as:

- a Jetson.

That rolls off the tongue quite smoothly. So this particular aircraft is a Lilium Jetson. More broadly:

'Jetson' can be the term used for any successful flying car design that capitalizes on VTOL/HC efficiency, regardless of whether ducted fans, propellers, jets or whatever is used for propulsion.

~ COPE