Vertical Aerospace unveiled Valo as the successor to its VX4 prototype. The company targets up to 100 miles of range and 150 mph cruise; after re-baselining the program in July 2026, it now expects Type Certification in 2029 rather than 2028.
100 miles — Valo’s targeted range 150 mph — Valo’s targeted cruise speed 4 seats — launch configuration, with a design path to 6 2029 — Vertical’s current expected Type Certification year
Valo is the configuration Vertical intends to take through certification after the VX4 prototype program. Its revised battery, wing, propulsion and materials choices now have to be demonstrated through conformity and compliance testing, and the program has been re-baselined to an expected 2029 Type Certification.
Completion of Critical Design Review, the build and test of certification-conforming aircraft, closure of compliance findings, and whether the final conforming configuration preserves the performance targets disclosed at unveiling.
Vertical Aerospace unveiled Valo as the aircraft it intends to take through certification after the VX4 prototype program. The redesign changes the airframe, battery installation, wing and propeller arrangement, and materials strategy rather than simply renaming the VX4.
Vertical states that Valo is being designed for up to 100 miles of range and a 150 mph cruise speed, initially with four seats and a design path to six. Those are company targets, not independently demonstrated production-aircraft performance figures. The company also describes the aircraft as having class-leading cargo capacity; until comparable certified configurations and payload definitions are available across competing aircraft, that claim is not independently verifiable.
Vertical originally targeted 2028 Type Certification, but on 13 July 2026 the company said it had re-baselined the remaining certification work and now expects Valo Type Certification in 2029. It also said it expects to complete Critical Design Review by the end of 2026, establishing the certifiable design baseline before the build and test of certification-conforming aircraft. The 2029 date is a company schedule, not a regulatory commitment.
The under-floor battery arrangement and revised propulsion layout are particularly consequential because they affect mass distribution, thermal containment, structural integration, crashworthiness and failure isolation. Those are certification-level engineering questions; an unveiling does not establish that the design has satisfied them.
Vertical has also published economic-impact and employment projections around the program. Those figures are company forecasts rather than measured outcomes and should be treated separately from technical or regulatory evidence.
Not investment advice. This article is technical and certification analysis only and is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security.
