Czech-German (European) carmaker Skoda Auto, maker of the ubiquitous 130 and Favorit models, has today announced that it will start developing a 120 to 150 passenger narrow-body airliner.
After making tentative forays into the military aviation world in World War II but being on the wrong side, unfortunately, Skoda seems to now have set its sights on the civil aviation market. The timeline is still not clear, but insider sources reveal that design work is scheduled to start in 2025, with certification slated for 2069 and first assembly in 2073.
Those same sources said that the aircraft will have 5 engines, very unusual for a narrow-body, but unconfirmed rumours indicate that Skoda is also evaluating making their own engines. Having 5 of the engines at conceptual stage seems to indicate that Skoda are not optimistic on the performance their engines will be capable of.
If all goes according to plan, the aircraft will come on the market just as the first anti-gravity craft are invented in China, and there will be commercial passenger flight schedules to Mars.
Industry insiders were understandably sceptical. One (who chose to remain anonymous in case finally proven wrong although he wouldn’t be alive to see it) remarked, “The avia in Octavia is the closest they will come to aviation. It will flop!”
No airline customers have yet come out in support of the program, although Skoda’s Twitter post has a number of likes from known Asian despots.
