The future of air taxi
During the Global Urban Advanced Air Summit held at the Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Center last week, Tim Johnson, policy director for the UK Civil Aviation Authority, and Jay Merkle, executive director of the UAS Office of Integration at the US Federal Aviation Administration, spoke about eVTOL technology. Speaking on behalf of both organizations, they stated that electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) technologies are the future of air taxi and they aim to work together to support the future of aircraft operations.
Joint statement from two associations
The US Federal Aviation Administration and the UK Civil Aviation Authority recognize the potential of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) and other Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) aircraft for significant benefit to the public. o support the development and operation of future eVTOL aircraft, US and UK civil aviation authorities are ready to engage in a series of bilateral and multilateral collaborations focused on facilitating certification and validating new eVTOL aircraft, production, continued airworthiness, operations and personnel licensing.
As these aircraft enter the aviation ecosystem, we must continue to maintain the high safety standards the public expects. To facilitate and accelerate integration, this technology must be tested with robust security tests. All procedures that currently ensure security in the aviation industry should be implemented in these technologies.
Both regulatory bodies have a strong history of collaboration on aircraft certification, airspace integration, operations and infrastructure, leading to a safer and more sustainable industry. This common experience has created the ground for working together in this newly born sector.
How will it affect the future?
eVTOL technology continues to be developed by different companies today. While these technologies are expected to significantly reduce vehicle traffic, significant profits are expected in transportation time thanks to direct air transportation. In addition, electric vehicles do not harm nature.
Transportation from San Francisco to Los Angeles is expected to take place in as little as 1 hour with eVTOL aircraft (about 6 hours by land). Apart from the time lost in traffic, these vehicles can be actively used in situations such as emergency patients and organ transplants. It is among the developments that are expected that especially aircraft charter companies will turn to transporting their passengers with eVOLT, after the industry’s acceptance and passing the legal procedures.
Although the concept of air taxi seems like a science fiction movie fantasy, many companies, especially in the USA and England, claim that flights can start at the end of 2023.
