In 2019, Haofeng “Hector” Xu, a PhD student in MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics with a solid grounding in aviation and aerospace engineering, decided to learn to fly helicopters. Witnessing first-hand the risks associated with piloting, he set out to make helicopter flight safer. In 2021, he founded Rotor Technologies Inc., an autonomous helicopter company determined to minimize the number of fatalities recorded annually among pilots of small private aircrafts in the U.S.
Rotor Technologies is advancing aviation safety by modifying existing helicopters with state-of-the-art sensors and software to exclude the pilot from some of the most dangerous missions. With this technology, Rotor pots to broaden the use cases for aviation. The company’s autonomous aircraft, which can carry heavier loads, fly faster and last longer than battery-powered drones, are already operational around its Nashua, New Hampshire HQ. The first products are set for sale later this year.
Assembling a top-notch team from MIT was key to achieving the company’s objectives. The team comprised the best engineers Xu has ever worked with, who had built revolutionary things at MIT. With support from the MIT Venture Mentoring Service, the MIT Industrial Liaison Program, and the NSF’s New England Innovation Corps program, Rotor was able to take flight. Rotor partners with the Robinson Helicopter Company, retrofitting its helicopters with advanced systems during the mandatory overhaul after about 2,000 hours of flight time.
The central component of Rotor’s upgrade is the “fly by wire” system, an interface between computers and motors and the aircraft’s flight control features. Rotor also equips the helicopters with a wide range of cutting-edge sensors and communication tools, many adopted from the autonomous automobile industry. The company provides 24/7 monitoring with a cloud-based human supervision system termed Cloudpilot, and initiates flights in remote areas to obviate the risk of harm to people.
Rotor’s R550X model can carry up to 1,212 pounds, travel over 120 mph, and stay airborne for several hours continuously when equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks. The aircraft is piquing interest among prospective buyers keen on extending flying times, increasing safety or exploring entirely new applications.
Rotor’s sales strategy includes selling a few units this year before ramping up to 50 to 100 aircraft per year onwards. Xu hopes that in the long term, Rotor will have a significant impact on daily life by making travel safer, more autonomous and affordable through vertical take-off and landing aircraft.
