Zuri’s Riveting Hybrid-electric eVTOL TD 2.0 Displayed at AERO Friedrichshafen

Zuri has been up to many things. They recently conducted flight testing of their small-scale prototype, started building the their Technology Demonstrator 2.0, and attended industry events, including this year’s AERO Friedrichshafen, which is currently in session from the 22nd to the 25th of April.

Below is a video of their recent subscale model flight testing:

• Founded in 2017 by CEO Michal Illich
• Headquartered in Prague, Czechia 🇨🇿
• Manufacturer of Zuri hybrid VTOL aircraft
  • Hybrid-electric propulsion architecture
  • Targeted range of 700 km, ~435 miles (subject to certification and final configuration)
  • Projected speed of up to 350km/h, ~217 mph (design target)
  • Tourism and regional point-to-point air travel
  • Public safety, humanitarian and government-operated SAR & MEDEVAC missions
  • Cargo/logistics applications
  • Designed to support SAF blends
  • Configurations:
    • Passenger configuration: 4 passengers plus 1 pilot
    • Medical configuration: 1 reclining patient, up to 2 medical personnel plus 1 pilot

A Truly Riveting Design: Zuri’s Technology Demonstrator (TD 2.0)

Zuri’s Technology Demonstrator (TD 2.0) is an eye-catching and riveting aircraft that looks like it belongs in a spy film, but there’s much more to it than just its sleek design. The TD 2.0 is a crucial step toward proving Zuri’s ambitions in regional air mobility (RAM), giving the company a platform to showcase its latest technologies in action. Even the construction tells a story: with its metal airframe and visible rivets, featured in social media updates, it’s clear Zuri is serious about building and flying this large-scale prototype, which comes in at about 60% of the size of its future five-seater aircraft.

• Technology Demonstrator 2.0 (TD 2.0)
  • MTOW: 690 kg
  • Modes of Flight: CTOL and VTOL
  • Cruise Speed (Vc): 200 km/h
  • Target range: 200 – 250 km (development objective)
  • Material: All-metal construction
  • Objective:
    • Test hybrid-electric propulsion
    • Flight control laws
    • Transition performance

AERO Friedrichshafen 2026

This week Zuri is showcasing their continued progress at the AERO Friedrichshafen industry fair in Friedrichshafen, Germany.

Members and enthusiasts of the aviation industry visiting Zuri’s booth at Hall A7, Stand 211, will be able to meet members of the Zuri team and learn more about how Zuri plans to change the way people travel, through exciting possibilities within urban (UAM), as well as regional air mobility (RAM), utilizing the hybrid-electric eVTOL aircraft it is currently developing. This year, AERO Friedrichshafen has made a new record with roughly 820 exhibitors from 50 nations, as the largest business aviation trade show Europe has to offer this year. 35,000 people are expected to attend the four day event (22nd – 25th of April).

“We are very proud of what we have achieved this year. The enthusiasm and anticipation among exhibitors, partners, and visitors are already clearly noticeable.” – Tobias Bretzel, Project Manager AERO at Fairnamic GmbH (organizer of Aero Friedrichshafen)

AERO Friedrichshafen

• Europe’s premier general aviation airshow
• Held annually in April
• Over 32,000 visitors arriving from than 80 nations
• More than 500 journalists from all over the world
• Zuri generates great interest at their booth from visitors and media alike, which gets stronger every year since they began exhibiting at AERO Friedrichshafen

Zuri’s Chief Marketing Officer, Robert Demmer explained the significance of Zuri’s longtime participation at Aero Friedrichshafen, what visitors can look forward to seeing from the Czech eVTOL company‘s booth at this year’s show (Hall A7, Stand 211), as well as some exciting progress planned for this year:

“Zuri has been at AERO Friedrichshafen for years. A subscale model and our VR flight simulator in 2023, the Skeleton ground testbed in 2024, and the same testbed upgraded with spinning propellers in 2025. This year we’re showing a full-scale display aircraft representing TD 2.0, our second Technology Demonstrator, now in manufacturing in Prague. It features eight tiltrotors, hybrid-electric propulsion, and a two-seat interior. TD 2.0 is engineered to validate the full architecture at scale, including the tiltrotor mechanism, hybrid-electric powertrain, and transition control. Unmanned flight testing is scheduled to begin in late 2026.” – Robert Demmer, Chief Marketing Officer at Zuri

Sustainable Aviation Trail

It is also worth mentioning that since Zuri is a sustainable advanced air mobility company, creating aircraft that will consume significantly less fuel than helicopters, with a hybrid-electric propulsion system that requires less batteries cells than all-electric systems (and therefore requiring less minerals to be mined), as well as being developed for SAF compatibility, make it obvious why Zuri is part of the “Sustainable Aviation Trail” at AERO Friedrichshafen. This year is the first time visitors can join guided tours to select exhibits based on themes such as sustainability.

AERO Friedrichshafen 2025

FROM SKELETON TO IRON BIRD: ZURI’S HYBRID VTOL REVOLUTION CONTINUES (video below):

AERO Friedrichshafen 2024:

Zuri at AERO Friedrichshafen in 2024 (watch below):

AERO Friedrichshafen 2023:

Zuri Launches VR Simulator (1+4) and Drone 3MV1-NG at AERO Friedrichshafen

Zuri 2.0 (5 seater hybrid electric eVTOL)

The demonstrator is just the first step toward Zuri’s intended five-seat hybrid VTOL. The company is targeting cruise speeds around 350 km/h and regional-class range figures, putting its ambitions closer to the ranges of fixed-wing capabilities than short-hop taxis. It’s a aircraft built for intercity travel, remote access, and underserved regional corridors that lack conventional transport options. Such direct aviation networks are a key component of regional air mobility (RAM), that will fundamentally change the way we view air travel from the traditional “hub and spoke” model.

Zuri 2.0 (Future Hybrid VTOL Aircraft)

• Seating Capacity: 5 (1 pilot + 4 passengers)
• MTOW: 2 800 kg
• Cruise Speed (Vc): 350 km/h
• Range: 700 km ^*
• Material: Composite construction

^*Visual Flight Rules
(Values subject to ongoing validation as part of test and development program)

What makes Zuri especially notable within the wider advanced air mobility landscape is its versatility. While its long-term vision centers around regional passenger transport, the underlying platform is just as applicable to cargo, emergency response, and defense missions, which are areas where hybrid propulsion and VTOL flexibility offer immediate, practical advantages.

At the heart of Zuri’s business model is passenger transportation, and that’s a good thing! While there are other many important and even life-saving applications of the Zuri aircraft such as search and rescue, fortunately most passengers will experience the beautiful Zuri hybrid-electric eVTOL transporting them to work or on a weekend getaway. Zuri’s design features large windows which provide generous views of the cities, mountains, beaches, forests, deserts, and fields below. Flying on the Zuri will give you plenty of reasons for keeping your phone down or monitor away and instead gaze into the surroundings for a bird’s eye view.

Zuri’s eVTOL features exquisite styling and refinement to be expected from a European luxurious eVTOL aircraft.

Future Event: Maker Faire Prague (May 9 -10)

For those unable to attend AERO Friedrichshafen, Zuri is set to engage with the public again really soon, with plans to participate in the Maker Faire Prague, one of Central Europe’s most prominent showcases of innovation and engineering creativity.

Maker Faire

• Established in San Francisco Bay Area in 2006
• Locations:
  • Global faires
    • Paris
    • San Francisco Bay Area
    • Hannover
    • Rome
    • Shenzhen
    • Tokyo
  • Featured faires
    • Prague
    • Miami
    • Los Angeles
    • Kyoto
    • Hawthorne
    • and many more
  • Community faires
  • School faires
    • UT Austin College of Natural Science

Aurion motor controller

Zuri’s Aurion controller is a key piece of in-house technology that underpins the company’s hybrid-electric propulsion system. Developed internally rather than sourced off-the-shelf, Aurion is a motor controller designed to manage the performance of the aircraft’s electric propulsion units with high precision. The word “aurion” (αὔριον) in Greek means “tomorrow”, “next day”, or “by morning”. A fitting name, considering this is a component of Zuri’s work towards building the aviation technology of tomorrow.

At its core, the controller uses a field-oriented control (FOC) algorithm to regulate motor current and rotational speed (RPM) based on commands from the flight computer, enabling smooth and efficient operation across different flight phases. This is particularly important for a tiltrotor eVTOL, where propulsion demands change significantly between vertical takeoff, transition, and forward flight.

Aurion motor controller

• In-house design
• Features FOC control algorithm to regulate motor current and RPM of the electric motor propulsion unit based on commands from the flight computer
• 3 times lighter than comparable designs
  • Saves weight
  • Improves performance of aircraft
• Satisfactory initial laboratory EMI testing

One of the main motivations behind developing Aurion in-house was weight and performance. According to Zuri, comparable commercial motor controllers were nearly three times heavier, which would have negatively impacted overall aircraft efficiency and payload capability. Early laboratory testing, including electromagnetic interference (EMI) assessments, has shown promising results, with further integration testing planned as part of the Technology Demonstrator 2.0 program.

Overall, Aurion highlights Zuri’s emphasis on tightly integrated, purpose-built systems, an approach that can offer meaningful advantages in performance and system optimization for next-generation regional air mobility aircraft.

AERO Friedrichshafen and the Rest of 2026

Zuri’s presence at AERO Friedrichshafen 2026 reflects a company entering a more visible and consequential phase of its development. As one of Europe’s leading gatherings for general aviation, bringing together hundreds of exhibitors and tens of thousands of industry professionals, AERO Friedrichshafen provides a fitting stage for Zuri to demonstrate tangible progress rather than just conceptual ambition.

What sets Zuri apart is its consistent emphasis on engineering-first development. Previous appearances have already shown unique hardware, from subscale aircraft to it’s “skeleton” large-scale ground testbed, engaging both industry stakeholders and the broader aviation community. At the 2026 edition, this trajectory continues as the company moves closer to a critical milestone: getting its hybrid tiltrotor Technology Demonstrator 2.0 into flight testing, a step that will validate its core architecture for regional air mobility (RAM).

In that context, Zuri’s particpation at AERO Friedrichshafen spaning many years is less about spectacle and more about credibility and serious industry involvement. It signals a transition from ideas to experimentation and execution, where design choices, propulsion concepts, and system integration are no longer theoretical, but increasingly put into practice. As the hybrid eVTOL space matures, Zuri’s steady, methodical approach, on display in Friedrichshafen, positions it as a serious contender in shaping the future of regional air transportation.

Stay tuned for more coverage from eVTOL Buzz as we continue to follow Zuri, the Czech hybrid-electric eVTOL OEM led by visionary CEO and founder Michal Illich, as it moves ever closer towards its goal of becoming a global leader in the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and Regional Air Mobility (RAM) sectors.

More Info:

Zuri (official website): click here

Flying High with Hybrid: An Interview with Zuri’s Visionary Founder and CEO, Michal Illich: click here

Zuri Technology Demonstrator 2.0: Advancing Hybrid VTOL Toward Regional Air Mobility: click here

Maker Faire (official website): click here

AERO 2026 with Record Number of Exhibitors and Expanded Airshow on Saturday: click here

UT Austin Hello Maker Studio: click here