Indeed, those advances makes it possible for so many aircraft designers to clamour for airtime, as it were. “You could say SkyDrive mobility has been nurtured by consumption demands as well as by advances in technology.” “Consumer demand has grown, but humans have not yet provided a clear solution to traffic, even through options like electric cars or speedy alternatives like TGV train,” says SkyDrive representative Takako Wada.
This summer, the company successfully flew its SD-03 craft for several minutes around an airfield with a pilot at the helm. Japanese startup SkyDrive, for example, recently teamed up with Toyota to conduct a test flight of its all-electric air taxi, said to be the world’s smallest electric vehicle that can take off and land from a vertical position. Other companies have partnered with existing car manufacturers to create models they plan to develop for eventual commercial use. “Everyone should have the option to walk, be driven, cycle, or fly.” “We don’t want this to be a toy for the wealthy, but part of a well-integrated journey for anyone in an urban area,” he says. But eventually, says Nestmann, the company’s goal is to make the cost competitive with, say, an Uber Black. These first flights will cost €300 ($350/£270) per ticket. VoloCity’s first commercial flights are scheduled to take place in 2022. That will mean a higher cost per ride at first, but Volocopter hopes to build consumer confidence before transitioning to a full-autonomy model: an electric, wingless craft powered by nine batteries, which will transport passengers throughout a planned network of vertiports – airports for planes that take off and land vertically – across major cities. Initially, the VoloCity will only have room for a single passenger. “It’s like an Uber Black or any other premium service,” says Fabien Nestmann, vice president of public affairs at Volocopter. Germany-based Volocopter, for instance, has marketed its VoloCity craft as the first commercially licensed electrically powered air taxi, a vehicle which will eventually run without a pilot. Meanwhile, aviation authorities hash out the policies and safety standards that will govern this new realm of transport.
Venture capitalists, auto and aviation corporations (even rideshare company Uber, with its ambitious Uber Elevate) are staking claims on the burgeoning industry, which may be worth as much as $1.5tn (£1.1tn) by 2040. Dozens of start-up companies are competing to develop commercial jetpacks, flying motorbikes and personal air taxis.
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