The AP reports that the same Ohio river valley “where the Wright brothers pioneered human flight will soon be manufacturing cutting-edge electric planes that take off and land vertically, under an agreement announced Monday between the state and Joby Aviation Inc.” Gov. Mike DeWine (R) said, “When you’re talking about air taxis, that’s the future. We find this very, very exciting – not only for the direct jobs and indirect jobs it’s going to create, but like Intel, it’s a signal to people that Ohio is looking to the future. This is a big deal for us.” Joby’s decision to “locate its first scaled manufacturing facility at a 140-acre (57-hectare) site at Dayton International Airport delivers on two decades of groundwork laid by the state’s leaders, Republican Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said.” Joby’s production aircraft “is designed to transport a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200 miles (321.87 kilometers) per hour, with a maximum range of 100 miles (160.93 kilometers).”
;Full Story (Associated Press)
Tag: Air Taxis
Vertical Aerospace Pushes EVOTL Certification to Late 2026
Aviation International News reports that Vertical Aerospace “expects it will need at least an additional 12 months to certify its VX-4 eVTOL.” A letter to company shareholders said a review of the UK-based public company’s program timeline “has resulted in a decision by the management team to target certification by late 2026.” Vertical previously “indicated the four-passenger vehicle could be approved in 2025.” The letter cited ongoing air safety regulation work in the UK, Europe, the US, and Japan, with regulatory differences between the countries explaining the additional time required.
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Revolutionary New Air Transportation is Closer Than We Think
The Miami Herald reported that the Federal Aviation Administration has proposed a plan for incorporating air taxis into some of the biggest airports in the U.S., with acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen working with NASA to provide air taxi lanes in the sky and build “vertiports” for them to land on.
Full Story (Miami Herald)
Air Taxis Will Start Commercial Flights in 2025, Honeywell Predicts
Bloomberg reports that Honeywell’s head of aerospace business, Mike Madsen, said that he sees the first eVTOL air taxis beginning operation in 2025, but not being fully embraced by the industry until closer to the end of this decade.
Full Story (Bloomberg – subscription publication)
United Airlines Partners with Archer Aviation for Chicago Air Taxis
CBS News Chicago reports that United Airlines “is teaming up with Archer Aviation to provide air taxi service between O’Hare International Airport and the West Loop starting in 2025, at the same time construction on the Kennedy Expressway will be causing major delays for outbound traffic. United and Archer plan to launch the city’s first air taxi route between O’Hare and Vertiport Chicago on the Near West Side close to Pilsen and the Illinois Medical District, offering 10-minute rides between the airport and the downtown area.”
Full Story (CBS News Chicago)
Air Taxis Clear One Regulation Hurdle
BBC News reports that the FAA said on Monday that “it was proposing to expand its definition of the machines it considered air carriers from airplanes and helicopters, adding ‘powered lift’ to the list.” This is a big step forward in the regulation clearance for commercial air taxis, but the rules “now face a period of public comment before they can go into effect.” The agency also “said it expected to publish proposed rules for operating such aircraft in summer 2023. Those rules will outline in more detail the criteria that firms will need to meet to license pilots and launch their operations.”
BBC News (BBC News)
Air Taxis Could Lessen Traffic Issues in Major Cities
The Hill reported that electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) air taxis is a space “saturated with startups trying to get their product to market.” The idea behind this service is to make such travel affordable and ease traffic grid strain while maintaining a green energy profile for the sector.
Full Story (The Hill)
Boeing Invests Further in Air Taxis
The Wall Street Journal reports that The Boeing Company is investing another $450 million into Wisk, its joint venture with Kitty Hawk Corp. aiming to develop pilotless air-taxis. The Journal says Airbus and Embraer have their own air taxi units.
Full Story (Wall Street Journal)
France to Test Electric Air Taxis Before 2024 Summer Olympics
The Hill reports that France “is set to begin testing electric air taxis in the coming months, with the goal of launching them in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics.” The flying taxis “will be tested at a hub outside Paris at Pontoise” in the hopes of establishing two flight paths to the 2024 Olympics from both Paris airports and two southwest suburbs, respectively.
Full Story (The Hill)
BAE Systems Developing Power Management System for Air Taxis
Aviation Today reports that BAE Systems is developing “energy storage and management solutions for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.” BAE Systems Controls and Avionics Solutions Business Development Lead for Aircraft Electrification Justin McClellan told Aviation Today, “Our main focus, I’d say, on battery technology and energy storage would be on high-reliability high-integrity energy storage for flight-critical applications like primary power for the eVTOL aircraft or air taxis.” BAE Systems expects the eVTOL module to be ready by the end of 2022 or early 2023.