Editing VTOL (section)

{{short description|Aircraft takeoff and landing done vertically}}
{{Redirect|Heli-Jet|the helicopter airline based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada|Helijet}}
{{for|rocket vertical takeoff and landing|VTVL}}
A '''vertical take-off and landing '''('''VTOL''')''' aircraft''' is one that can [[takeoff and landing|take off and land]] vertically without relying on a [[runway]]. This classification can include a variety of types of [[aircraft]] including [[helicopter]]s as well as [[thrust-vectoring]] [[fixed-wing aircraft]] and other hybrid aircraft with powered [[helicopter rotor|rotor]]s such as [[cyclogyro|cyclogyros/cyclocopters]] and [[gyrodyne]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Laskowitz|first=I. B.|title=Vertical Take-Off and Landing (Vtol) Rotorless Aircraft with Inherent Stability |date=1961|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1961.tb30485.x|journal=Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences|volume=93|issue=1|pages=3–24|doi=10.1111/j.1749-6632.1961.tb30485.x|bibcode=1961NYASA..93....3L |s2cid=84160729 |issn=0077-8923|url-access=subscription}}</ref>
[[File:Royal International Air Tattoo 2018 MOD 45164432.jpg|thumb|An [[Royal Air Force|RAF]] [[Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II|F-35B Lightning II]] demonstrating a vertical landing]]
Some VTOL aircraft can operate in other modes as well, such as [[CTOL]] (conventional take-off & landing), [[STOL]] (short take-off & landing), or [[STOVL]] (short take-off & vertical landing). Others, such as some helicopters, can only operate as VTOL, due to the aircraft lacking [[landing gear]] that can handle [[taxiing]]. VTOL is a subset of [[V/STOL]] (vertical or short take-off & landing).

Some [[aerostat|lighter-than-air aircraft]] also qualify as VTOL aircraft, as they can hover, takeoff and land with vertical approach/departure profiles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.seattlebusinessmag.com/technology/plimp-plane-blimp-hybrid-looking-disrupt-drone-market|title=Plimp, a Plane-Blimp Hybrid, Is Looking to Disrupt the Drone Market - Seattle brothers James and Joel Egan are adding a new airship to the drone market, and it could be available as soon as next year.|author=BILL VIRGIN | publisher=Seattle Business Magazine| date=December 2017|access-date=16 November 2021}}</ref>

Electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, or [[eVTOL]]s, are being developed along with more autonomous flight control technologies and mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) to enable advanced air mobility (AAM), that could include on-demand air taxi services, regional air mobility, freight delivery, and [[personal air vehicles]] (PAVs).<ref>Le Bris, G. et al. (2022). "ACRP Research Report 236: Preparing Your Airport for Electric Aircraft and Hydrogen Technologies". Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC: [https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26512/preparing-your-airport-for-electric-aircraft-and-hydrogen-technologies https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26512/preparing-your-airport-for-electric-aircraft-and-hydrogen-technologies]</ref>

Besides the ubiquitous helicopters, there are currently two types of VTOL aircraft in military service: [[tiltrotor]] aircraft, such as the [[Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey]], and thrust-vectoring airplanes, such as the [[Harrier jump jet|Harrier family]] and new [[Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II#F-35B|F-35B Lightning II]] [[Joint Strike Fighter]] (JSF). In the civilian sector, currently only helicopters are in general use (some other types of commercial VTOL aircraft have been proposed and are under development {{as of|2017|lc=yes}}). Generally speaking, VTOL aircraft capable of STOVL use the latter wherever possible, since it typically significantly increases takeoff weight, range, or payload compared to pure VTOL.<ref name="Khurana p. 133">{{cite book | vauthors=Khurana KC | title=Aviation Management: Global Perspectives | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ESWo4Zl5g1IC| date=2009 | page=133| publisher=Global India Publications | isbn=9789380228396 }}</ref>