Wisk Outlines Gen 6 Aircraft Changes and Battery Supply Approach

Wisk’s Gen 6 aircraft plan includes a larger fuselage, increased passenger capacity and a revised propulsion configuration intended to improve speed and range, acting CFO Drake Berglund said. He also described the company’s decision to work with a supplier on battery modules rather than develop them in-house.

Key details

• Wisk uses an estimated cost goal of $4 per passenger mile to assess major engineering and program decisions.
• The company’s battery-module approach followed a review of cell formats and a make-or-buy assessment. Thermal-runaway testing and supplier maturity informed the decision.
• Wisk describes Block Zero as a non-conforming prototype for integrated testing and technical learning, rather than conformity testing.
• The program is based largely at one site in Mountain View, California.
• Chief engineer Geoff Long is associated with a “rule of five” guideline about repeated attempts to mature novel systems.

Wisk is targeting an estimated cost of $4 per passenger mile.

Why it matters

Wisk’s passenger-mile cost goal gives the company a financial measure for evaluating engineering choices. Its battery-module decision also sets out where Wisk plans to rely on a supplier as it develops the aircraft.