The European Investment Bank (EIB), through its advisory services, is supporting the German aviation company VÆRIDION in the development of a fully electric regional aircraft. The advisory support, provided under the EU Innovation Fund Project Development Assistance (IFPDA) programme, aims to help the company advance its Microliner programme towards industrialization and prepare it for future investment.
“Electric regional aircraft can transform how people move between smaller cities and regions – not in 2050, but within the next decade,” said Ivor van Dartel, CEO and Co-founder of VÆRIDION. “With the Microliner, we aim to provide clean, affordable flights on routes that today are either unserved or reliant on fossil fuels, leveraging the 2,300 regional airports that already exist across Europe. The EIB’s advisory support brings in scaleup expertise on topics like project structuring, risk management and access to public and private funding, helping us turn a promising technology prototype into a bankable industrial project that can be rolled out at scale.”
“Decarbonising aviation is one of Europe’s most complex climate challenges. Through our advisory services under the Innovation Fund Project Development Assistance programme, we support innovative companies that can change how people travel,” said EIB Vice President Ioannis Tsakiris. “VÆRIDION’s Microliner project shows how new electric aircraft can make regional flying cleaner and quieter, while maintaining essential links between communities across Europe.”
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Founded in 2021 and headquartered in Munich with a subsidiary in Delft, VÆRIDION is a manufacturer of small, all-electric regional aircraft. The company brings together engineers with experience from leading aerospace, high-tech and automotive companies to develop the Microliner, a 9-seat, fully electric aircraft designed for short-haul regional routes up to 400 kilometres.
The Microliner will operate with zero inflight emissions (no CO2, no NOx, no contrails), significantly lower noise levels, and higher energy efficiency than conventional aircraft, offering airlines and operators a new option for cost-competitive and climate friendly regional connections. VÆRIDION has already secured an initial customer order as well as partnerships with established industry players.
The aircraft is designed to improve access to remote regions underserved by highway and high-speed rail, which currently require long car journeys or multi-leg rail trips. It aims to provide quiet, electric flights from existing small airports, relinking mid-sized cities, islands, and rural regions that have lost scheduled air services. The Microliner is capable of operating from both, large hubs and thousands of existing small regional airfields in Europe and the United States, without the need for new runways or costly ground infrastructure.
As part of its development program, VÆRIDION plans to establish a dedicated manufacturing site at Oberpfaffenhofen Airport in Germany. The site is intended to serve as the company’s primary production and assembly hub for its proprietary airborne battery systems, as well as the central testing location in preparation for the Microliner’s first flight. In addition, the facility should lay the groundwork for future serial production of the Microliner. Once in operation, the aircraft is expected to contribute to the decarbonization of short haul aviation while enhancing regional connectivity.
VÆRIDION is targeting the Microliner’s first flight in 2027, with expected entry into service by 2030 following certification. By then, the company anticipates that electric Microliners could provide a zero-emission alternative on a large share of today’s short haul turboprop routes across Europe.
EIB advisory support to scale from prototype to market
The EIB’s advisory team will help VÆRIDION draw up a detailed business plan, financing structure and risk analysis so that private investors and public funds can support the ramp-up from technology prototype to serial production.
The European Investment Bank is providing dedicated advisory support to help VÆRIDION refine its technical concept, business plan and investment structure. This is meant to make the Microliner project more attractive to public and private investors, and to prepare it for possible applications to the EU Innovation Fund and other funding sources as the company moves from technology development to certification and production.
