MONTREAL – From the luxurious heights of his suite on the 23rd floor at the Fairmont Dubai, Fethi Chebil gazes out at the sprawling urban landscape, envisioning the future of transport. As the CEO and founder of VPorts, a company specializing in designing terminals for flying taxis, Chebil is one of the many advocates who see a future where aerial taxis, also known as air taxis, will revolutionize short-haul passenger transport.
Dubai’s futuristic Museum of the Future serves as a fitting backdrop for the ambitious dreams of Chebil and others in the industry. These electric air taxis are poised to take flight as soon as 2025 for some manufacturers, while others are targeting 2028 as the year of lift-off. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has laid out a regulatory timeline that anticipates the operation of electric air taxis by 2028.
The vision of flying cars has long been portrayed in science fiction classics like “Metropolis,” dating as far back as 1927. However, the dream is now becoming a reality, with over 700 prototypes and designs of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOLs) being developed by around 350 companies, according to the Vertical Flight Society.
The concept of these electric air taxis holds great promise, as they could potentially alleviate congestion in urban and suburban areas, and even facilitate intercity transportation of people and goods. These eVTOLs usually resemble oversized drones with small rotors encircling a passenger pod, and they operate similarly to helicopters. Powered by lithium-ion batteries, they offer cleaner, quieter, and potentially cheaper flights compared to traditional jet fuel-powered helicopters.
However, while hundreds of prototypes have been developed, only a handful of companies have advanced to the stage of conducting regular flight tests with their air taxi models. Most of these aircraft can carry between one and five passengers and have a range of up to 250 kilometers on a single battery charge.
Despite some uncertainties, the industry has seen a surge in orders and investments. In the last six months of the previous year, over 80 companies placed orders for nearly 8,000 advanced air mobility aircraft, primarily air taxis. Established airlines such as United Airlines and American Airlines have placed orders for hundreds of these vehicles, while major car manufacturers like Stellantis and Toyota are partnering with air taxi companies to venture into the eVTOL market.
The total funds raised for eVTOL development reached US$2.5 billion in the first half of 2023, showing a 15 percent increase from the first six months of the previous year, although still lower than the figures seen in 2021 when several manufacturers went public.
In Canada, the eVTOL industry is considered “nascent” and has yet to attract venture-capital giants like those in the United States. However, some U.S. operators are looking to leverage Canada’s aeronautics clusters, with companies like Jaunt Air Mobility planning to relocate most of their operations to the Montreal area.
The first wave of aerial taxis is expected to function as shuttle services between major airports and downtown vertiports that integrate with existing mass transportation systems, rather than serving as point-to-point travel options. However, no company has yet been certified to carry passengers in an air taxi or other eVTOL.
Certification hurdles revolve around both battery reserve capacity and concerns over the “vortex ring state,” a real but sci-fi-sounding phenomenon where rotor-based aircraft get caught in their own turbulence, leading to a significant loss of lift. Regulatory bodies like Transport Canada are working on addressing these issues and have the capacity to certify emerging technologies under a “special condition” of airworthiness.
Another challenge is the cost associated with eVTOLs and vertiports. The retail price of a single air taxi can reach around US$2.4 million, while the overall cost of vertiports, equipped with necessary infrastructure like charging stations and hangars, poses a further obstacle.
Experts believe that regional trips between nearby cities, medical transport, and tourist flights may be more viable in the short term due to lower costs and less stringent regulations.
While Germany’s Volocopter has revealed plans for five eVTOL routes around Paris to be operational during the 2024 Olympics, the mass adoption of air taxis in urban areas might face challenges due to the need for designated corridors and wider public acceptance. Surveys suggest that 15 to 20 percent of respondents could envision switching to a flying taxi service in the future, and as more crewed aircraft undergo testing, public awareness and perception of air taxis are expected to grow.
Indeed, the future of flying taxis remains a fascinating prospect, and the reactions from the audience at a recent Volocopter demonstration in Paris exemplify the curiosity and anticipation surrounding these aerial vehicles. Although there are still hurdles to overcome, the potential for electric air taxis to become a reality seems closer than ever before.