Lilium had success landing a number of high-profile investors like Tencent and locking in customers, including an order for 100 electric jets from Saudi Arabia. And more recently it had powered up its first full-scale prototype. But the company was still years away from delivering its product.
In the meantime, it burned through cash and grappled with other challenges. In 2020, one of Lilium’s two prototypes burst into flames while maintenance was being carried out. While the model was close to being retired, Lilium paused testing on its the second, newer model until it could determine the cause of the accident with the first aircraft.