For anyone following the rise of personal eVTOLs, the Jetson ONE has become the poster child: compact, agile, and undeniably futuristic. But there’s one critique that appears again and again—flight time. With endurance typically hovering around 15–20 minutes, many viewers immediately ask the same question: What if someone built a Jetson ONE–style eVTOL that could actually stay in the air for much longer—and carry two people? That’s exactly the promise behind a new aircraft being developed by a French manufacturer called DTA. If the early information holds up, their upcoming eVTOL—often referred to as the JP-1—could be one of the most interesting attempts yet at turning the “flying go-kart” concept into something far more practical.
The Company Behind the Aircraft: DTA
DTA isn’t a startup learning aviation from scratch. The company is based in France and is best known for building gyroplanes, with reported sales of 500+ aircraft across 33 countries. That track record matters, because aircraft manufacturing experience—particularly in certified or regulated categories—tends to separate serious programs from flashy prototypes. Now, DTA appears to be leveraging its aviation background to enter the eVTOL space with a design that targets both practicality and safety.
Introducing the JP-1: A Bigger, Two-Seat Concept
Public information suggests the aircraft will likely be called the JP-1, though the name has not been officially confirmed. For simplicity, we’ll use “JP-1” here.
The JP-1 is described as a two-seat eVTOL with an estimated payload capacity around 180 kg. Its design also appears tuned around a critical regulatory threshold: staying below 525 kg maximum take-off mass (MTOM), which is an important limit in the French microlight category for two-seat aircraft—especially when equipped with a ballistic rescue parachute. One source suggests an empty weight near 250 kg and a maximum take-off weight around 450 kg, which would place it well outside the U.S. ultralight category.
DTA also suggests that the JP-1 is expected to be fully autonomous while still allowing manual piloting, and that a pilot license would still be required depending on the country and its regulations. But the biggest headline claims are its performance targets: up to 150 km/h and up to two hours of endurance.
That two-hour endurance claim is the part that demands a closer look.
Why Most Jetson ONE–Style eVTOLs Are Stuck at 20 Minutes
The Jetson ONE uses multiple rotors with diameters of roughly one meter, and it flies with a relatively high power demand typical of rotorcraft. A useful lens for understanding endurance is disk loading—the aircraft’s weight divided by the total rotor disk area. Lower disk loading generally means better hover efficiency; higher disk loading typically means more power is required to stay aloft.
Here’s the key insight: if we assume a maximum takeoff weight of about 200 kg for the Jetson ONE and 450 kg for the JP-1, and we account for the JP-1’s larger 1.5-meter propellers, both aircraft end up with very similar disk loading—around 63.7 kg/m² by this estimate. That’s important because it implies something counterintuitive:
If the JP-1 were a purely battery-powered eVTOL using energy storage in similar proportion to the Jetson ONE, its endurance would likely land in the same neighborhood: 15–20 minutes.
So how does DTA plan to reach two hours?
The Likely Answer: A Hybrid-Electric Generator
The JP-1’s larger airframe creates room for something small, single-seat eVTOLs usually can’t carry: an onboard electric generator. DTA appears to have incorporated an air inlet duct specifically for this purpose, which strongly suggests a hybrid-electric architecture—where a fuel-powered generator supplies electricity to the motors (and possibly charges a small buffer battery).
Power estimates suggest the aircraft may require somewhere around 80–100 kW to operate. And here’s where the trade-offs become very real: the lightest electric generators in the ~80 kW class can weigh roughly 136 kg. If the JP-1 truly targets a 450 kg MTOM, that would leave about 150 kg for the airframe structure, motors, propellers, wiring, systems, and safety equipment.
The ballistic parachute itself may weigh under 20 kg, which helps—but even then, the remaining mass budget becomes extremely tight, especially once you add fuel and any buffer battery capacity. This doesn’t make the concept impossible, but it suggests that either:
- the aircraft ends up heavier than 450 kg, or
- the generator and power system are lighter than typical benchmarks, or
- endurance assumptions rely on lower-than-expected cruise power, or
- some combination of the above.
In other words: the two-hour claim may be achievable, but the design will have to thread the needle carefully.
Two Efficiency Features That Make the JP-1 Especially Interesting
Even with a hybrid system, efficiency still matters—because every percent of power saved reduces fuel burn, heat, mass, and system strain. And this is where the JP-1 introduces genuinely thoughtful ideas.
1) Offset Rotor Planes for Cleaner Airflow
On aircraft like the Jetson ONE, rotors are typically arranged in the same plane, meaning during forward flight the rear rotors often operate in disturbed, turbulent airflow. The JP-1 appears to place its front rotors lower and rear rotors higher, which may allow the rear propellers to run in cleaner, less disturbed air during forward flight—boosting efficiency and potentially reducing noise and vibration.
2) “Dynamic Wings” That Reduce Rotor Workload
DTA also introduces a feature it calls dynamic wings—small wing surfaces located ahead of the rear propellers. These wings are claimed to contribute up to 10% of total lift. They’re described as “dynamic” because as the aircraft tilts forward in cruise, the wings adjust their angle to remain level relative to the ground.
The idea is straightforward: in forward flight, these wings generate lift, meaning the rotors don’t have to carry the entire weight of the aircraft. Reducing the effective rotor lift requirement lowers power demand, improves efficiency, and may extend endurance—especially in cruise where a hybrid generator could operate closer to its optimal power band.
Safety and Redundancy: Parachute + Multi-Motor Resilience
Safety is another area where the JP-1 tries to go beyond the typical “recreational eVTOL” blueprint. DTA states that the aircraft includes a ballistic rescue parachute, which can be a meaningful last-resort option (though parachutes generally have minimum altitude constraints to work effectively).
DTA also claims the JP-1 uses eight motors and is designed to keep flying even after losing up to three motors. Additionally, each motor is reportedly powered by its own independent electrical module, adding redundancy and improving fault tolerance in the propulsion system.
Why This Aircraft Could Hit a Real Market Niche
Whether or not every spec holds exactly as advertised, the underlying concept is clearly aligned with a market demand: people want eVTOLs that feel less like a short demo ride and more like an actual aircraft capable of meaningful range, with improved safety and two-seat utility.
A two-seater matters because it changes the value proposition—from “solo toy” to “shared experience” and potentially practical use cases. A ballistic parachute matters because it addresses a major psychological barrier for adoption. And the focus on efficiency—through rotor placement and wing-assisted lift—suggests this isn’t just a bigger drone, but a design trying to optimize the physics.
Most importantly, DTA is not new to aviation manufacturing, which increases the odds that the aircraft is being engineered with real-world constraints in mind.
Final Thoughts
The JP-1—if it arrives as described—could represent a compelling step forward for personal eVTOLs: two seats, stronger safety systems, and a credible attempt at breaking the 20-minute endurance ceiling. The two-hour claim will ultimately depend on weight, power requirements, generator performance, and how efficiently the aircraft transitions to and sustains cruise flight. But the design choices—hybrid potential, cleaner rotor airflow, and lift-assist “dynamic wings”—make this one worth watching.
If nothing else, it signals that manufacturers are listening: the market wants longer endurance, more utility, and better safety. DTA may be one of the first to seriously try delivering all three in a Jetson ONE–style form factor.