Air Taxis to be Tested on Singapore skies in the second half of 2019


Maldives
PUBLISHED October 20, 2018

German aviation start-up Volocopter has announced that it will perform a series of urban flight tests of its air taxis on Singapore in the second half of 2019. The flight tests are designed to validate and verify the ability of Volocopter's electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles to operate in Singapore's urban environment.


The firm's air taxi resembles a helicopter, but is based on drone technology and can fly two people for about 30km. The Volocopter can be flown with a pilot, unmanned via remote control or autonomously and is designed specifically for inner-city missions and can carry 160kg.


The company revealed in a statement that the tests which will culminate in public demo flights are supported by the Ministry of Transport, Economic Development Board and Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS).


Volocopter and CAAS will collaborate to establish the scope of the test flights and ensure that they meet the necessary requirements.


CAAS director of aviation industry Ho Yuen Sang was quoted as saying there is potential for air taxis to transform mobility and logistics in urban cities. Volocopter, he added, is at the forefront of such new and innovative technology in the aviation industry.


"CAAS is pleased to work together with Volocopter to study the technical capabilities and develop appropriate operational guidelines to facilitate such trials in Singapore." Said Ho Yuen Sang.


The German company revealed that it will work with government agencies to determine the right testing facilities and locations and the trials will focus on its vehicle's capabilities to perform flights under local conditions. It also will be setting up a product design and engineering team in Singapore to support its expansion plans.


For the flight tests in Singapore, the company will work with CAAS to decide which flight mode is the best for conditions here. It was previously reported that Volocopter is seeking to partner real estate developers and mobility providers to establish an infrastructure that can support flight testing.


A Volocopter spokesman said while its air taxis are currently not being used commercially anywhere, it is focusing on "achieving commercial certification to operate as air taxis".


"We expect the first commercial air taxi routes to open in three to five years. We are in discussions with cities around the world including some in Germany. However, at this point, we cannot make an estimation where the first route will open." Said the spokesman.


In September last year, Volocopter performed a public unmanned test flight in Dubai, where it partnered with the country's Roads and Transport Authority.


Volocopter is the global leader in the development of electrical vertical take-off and landing multicopters (eVTOL) as autonomous air taxis for the safe transport of people. The technical platform is extremely flexible and permits piloted, remote controlled, and fully autonomous flight. In addition, the unique design offers unprecedented degrees of safety based on the high level of redundancy in all critical components. 


As early as 2011 the company earned its entry into the history of aviation through the manned flight of the worlds first purely electrical multicopter. Since then the young enterprise has set new milestones: In 2016 Volocopter was granted provisional licensing for a two-seater Volocopter by the German aviation authority and in 2017 the aviation start-up showcased the first ever autonomous flight of an air taxi in cooperation with RTA Dubai. In the meantime, the founders Stephan Wolf and Alexander Zosel have gathered a team of experienced managers like CEO Florian Reuter and CTO Jan-Hendrik. This paved the way for the further expansion of the company. Daimler, Intel and Lukasz Gadowski are among the investors in the company.

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