Destinus SA, whose mission is to build near-space vehicles and infrastructure to power the world’s fastest and cleanest transportation network, has closed 26.8 million Swiss francs seed round. Destinus is developing a hypersonic hydrogen-powered vehicle capable of moving cargo between continents in less than 2 hours.
Destinus’ vision is a world where distance doesn’t exist. Its "hyperplane" is a hybrid between an airplane and a rocket. It will take off and land horizontally from airports using a hydrogen-fed airbreathing jet engine integrating seamlessly with other planes when it passes controlled airspace. Once a certain altitude and speed are reached, the hyperplane will switch to a cryogenic hydrogen rocket engine that will accelerate the aircraft to hypersonic velocity.
Various venture funds and family offices from Europe, North America, Latin America, and Asia participated in the financing round. Conny & Co, Quiet Capital, One Way Ventures, Liquid2 Ventures, Cathexis Ventures, ACE & Company, among others. Founder and CEO Mikhail Kokorich said: “We are excited about the broad support for Destinus, which further validates the potential for clean, hypersonic travel to anywhere in the world in 1-2 hours. We plan to use the funding to continue the development of our hydrogen airbreathing and rocket engines and test the first supersonic flights powered by hydrogen engines in the next 12-18 months. We have already made significant progress and have designed and filed patents for the unique subsystems, such as a hydrogen active cooling system, enabling a highly reusable hyperplane flying at almost the speed of a rocket”.
Dr. Cornelius (Conny) Boersch, the founder of Conny & Co. and Mountain Partners, joined the Destinus board. Conny has more than 25 years of experience as an entrepreneur, investor, and founder of numerous technology companies. With more than 400 investments, he is considered one of the most active and well-recognized business angels in Europe. Conny Boersch commented on the seed round: “I was an investor in Mikhail’s previous company, and his development pace is incomparable. The team began flight testing with a prototype less than six months after the company’s foundation. In addition to his technical and engineering experience, Mikhail is also one of the most organized and structured founders I have ever met.”
Destinus’ chairman of the Advisory Board, the former minister of Economics and Technology, and the vice-chancellor of Germany, a passionate pilot, Philipp Rösler, noted: “It is breathtaking to see a future in which travel anywhere in the world in 1-2 hours will be available. Most importantly, the hyperplane under development will use liquid hydrogen to fuel its engines. That gives the great opportunity to fly fast and at the same time be carbon neutral. The only emission of such engines is water. I am excited that companies like Destinus will be able to provide European leadership in the aerospace sector.”
Headquartered in Canton Vaud, Destinus has offices and facilities in Munich, Madrid, and Toulouse. The company has a team of more than 50 motivated and qualified engineers and managers from Arianespace, Boeing, Airbus, ESA, DLR, Dassault Aviation, Rolls-Royse, Safran, and other aerospace companies. The company plans to grow up to 100 people in 2022 to complete an extensive R&D and flight program.(Press release / ES)
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