Supernal, the U.S.-based electric air taxi unit of Korean automaker Hyundai, laid off most of its staff last week in a “strategic pivot,” according to a company spokesperson.
The spokesperson said 296 employees—about 80 percent of the company’s workforce—were let go Friday to “ensure our staffing and cost structures are optimized for the long-term delivery of our market-aligned aircraft design.”
Supernal last year began tethered flight testing using a demonstrator for its flagship S-A2 but has lagged behind its competitors in the sector. The company previously said it was targeting certification and commercial operations in 2028.
The spokesperson said Hyundai “remains committed” to advanced air mobility (AAM)—an umbrella term comprising electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxis and other novel designs—as part of its future plans. They emphasized that Supernal is “not shutting down.”
“Supernal’s immediate focus will not be impacted by this decision and remains on stabilizing the company, shaping a new business model, and developing a commercially viable aircraft,” the spokesperson said.
The Air Current, which broke the news Friday, reported that the move leaves Supernal with a “skeleton staff” of just 70 to 80 people to keep the business afloat. Per the Orange County Register, all of the company’s work will be consolidated at its headquarters in Irvine, California. Supernal also has a research and development hub in Fremont and conducts testing at the nearby Mojave Air & Space Port.
Supernal is developing the S-A2, which is intended for a pilot to fly up to four passengers on zero-emission, 25-to-40-mile flights, cruising at about 120 mph and 1,500 feet agl.
Like other eVTOL aircraft, it uses a distributed electric propulsion system to power an array of tilt propellers. Four attached to booms on the front of the wing tilt up, while four on the rear of the wing tilt down, and all remain powered on throughout operation. Per Supernal, it will fly as “quietly as a dishwasher.”
The design features a V-tail akin to the Cirrus Vision SF50 or previous versions of the Beechcraft Bonanza.
Supernal Downsizes
With the backing of Hyundai, Supernal is unlikely to go the way of Germany’s Lilium and Volocopter, which both ran out of cash in the past two years.
The automaker in April invested $6 billion to boost innovation across its U.S. business, a portion of which went toward Supernal’s research and development. Chances are it will not pivot away from the business entirely.
Still, it has been a tumultuous few years for Supernal. The company in April revealed the S-A2 demonstrator made its first tethered flight at Mojave. But it has yet to test a production-intent prototype, and it had not announced untethered flights before the Register in September exclusively reported that it planned to pause its flight test program.
The same month, David McBride, the former director of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, stepped down as Supernal’s chief technology officer. That followed a leadership transition in August that saw the exodus of former CEO Jaiwon Shin, who headed Hyundai’s AAM division. Tracy Lamb, the firm’s chief safety and quality officer, also stepped down in August.
Before that, over the summer, Supernal cut more than 50 employees as part of broader workforce reduction efforts by Hyundai, leaving it with about 500 personnel.
Shin’s responsibilities have since been assumed by David Rottblatt, Supernal’s senior director of business development, in an interim chief operating officer role. It has yet to announce a permanent successor.
“I recognize how deeply difficult today is, and I want to do all I can to help those affected by today’s notifications,” Rottblatt wrote on LinkedIn on Saturday. “You have been so resilient and brave, and I am incredibly thankful for your hard work.”
In September, Supernal positioned these moves as a strategic decision in the face of “external challenges—including regulatory frameworks, infrastructure development, and ecosystem maturity,” per a spokesperson. The spokesperson added that the company views those challenges as the “natural evolution of a pioneering sector” and “remains confident in the long-term potential of AAM.”
The timing of Supernal’s downsizing is not ideal considering the upcoming opportunities available to air taxi developers.
As soon as this summer, at least five of them will participate in the three-year eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). Supernal competitors Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, Beta Technologies, Wisk Aero, and many others have applied for the eIPP, during which the FAA will permit certain real-world operations with precertified aircraft. It could even permit some revenue generating operations.
Sergio Cecutta, who leads SMG Consulting’s AAM Reality Index, wondered if Supernal may instead pursue opportunities elsewhere.
“I think Supernal is reestablishing the framework of their entire company: who they are, what markets they are going after, what aircraft to offer, and the timeline,“ Cecutta told FLYING. “I think they have to decide if the future of their AAM efforts reside in the U.S., or if they will pull them back home to Korea. The jury is still out on when Supernal 2.0 will emerge. But I think with the no-rush, long-term thinking of Hyundai, it might take some time.”