(Adds details on the deal)

June 10 (Reuters) - Vertical Aerospace, an electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) maker backed by investors such as American Airlines , will go public through a merger with a blank-check firm in a deal valued at $2.2 billion, the company said on Thursday.

Vertical Aerospace said it has conditional pre-orders for up to $4 billion and 1,000 eVTOL aircraft, from aircraft lessor Avolon and American Airlines, and a pre-order option from Virgin Atlantic.

"If you think about transportation strategically this is the next big frontier," said Domhnal Slattery, chief executive of Avolon, the world's third-largest aircraft leasing company.

Vertical Aerospace said it has also raised funds from other companies including Honeywell and Rolls-Royce .

Vertical will be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker 'EVTL', following a deal with Broadstone Acquisition Corp . The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2021.

(Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru, Tracy Rucinski in Chicago and Tim Hepher in Paris; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

((Ankit.Ajmera@thomsonreuters.com;))