Aena, the world’s main airport administration firm by variety of passengers, UrbanV, the Italian vertiport operator, and the German pioneer of city air mobility (UAM), Volocopter, have entered right into a collaboration settlement to launch a pilot program to develop an UAM ecosystem. This system consists of a feasibility examine for the deployment of UAM and a possible proof of idea of economic operations (CONOPS) of a vertiport at an airport inside the Aena flight community.
The pilot program will progress in two steps: The primary two years will deal with a feasibility examine of UAM use inside the Aena community, figuring out potential clients, vertiport areas and business routes, infrastructure wants, and doable connections with different modes of transport.
The subsequent step will likely be to judge the potential of conducting flights take a look at on Aena services (topic to funding, availability of assets, permits to fly and so on.) to be able to proof the idea of operations.
Primarily based on this pilot examine, the partnership goals to evaluate the subsequent steps and doable future traces of collaboration within the UAM enterprise in Spain. Future traces of labor will likely be topic to strict evaluation of the outcomes of the pilot and the strategic alignment of every of the events.
There is no such thing as a shortcut to constructing an environment friendly and sustainable UAM ecosystem into a brand new area. This entails understanding the market potential, figuring out passenger-frequented routes, planning vertiport areas, and involving extra companions reminiscent of civil aviation authorities (CAA) and municipalities, amongst others. Aena, UrbanV, and Volocopter have the experience in respective elements of the aviation business to embark on the creation of an environment friendly UAM ecosystem in Spain and past.
UrbanV and Volocopter have already partnered for the 2024 Italian UAM market launch in Rome and at the moment are seeking to strengthen their collaboration in Spain. Aena is the world’s main airport administration firm within the variety of passengers. With the mixed experience of those three firms, a CONOPS of use circumstances at goal areas will likely be created as a blueprint, to later help world business enlargement.
Spain is accelerating its decarbonisation efforts to focus on net-zero by 2050, principally by means of electrification, inexperienced hydrogen, and biofuels 1 . Aena is 10 years forward of schedule by committing to be net-zero by 2040. Electrical vertical take-off and touchdown (eVTOL) plane can play a major position in decreasing carbon emissions in city and distant areas within the rapid future. With no emissions in flight, an ultra-low noise signature, and compliant to the best security requirements in aviation, Volocopter’s eVTOLs have the potential to revolutionize the way forward for aviation and make a major influence on cities throughout Spain.
Luis Cañon, Director of Innovation and Buyer Expertise of Aena mentioned: “Aena’s Innovation and Digital Transformation is predicated on utilizing know-how to enhance present and develop new companies.
We need to be worldwide leaders in the usage of digital instruments with the target of optimising the consumer expertise, rising operational effectivity, being extra sustainable and creating new companies round sustainable mobility. This challenge is a part of the corporate’s world technique in City Air Mobility and the validation of recent applied sciences and processes in Aena’s airport community.”
Carlo Tursi, CEO of UrbanV mentioned: “At UrbanV, we goal to enhance individuals’s lives by enabling a quick, environment friendly, secure, and clear different to present transport options for individuals and items over brief distances, by air. We have now the ambition to turn into a significant world operator of vertiport networks and we will likely be world pioneers in establishing a number of the first AAM routes worldwide. We’re excited to accomplice with AENA and Volocopter, two world leaders of their respective fields, and we stay up for exploring along with them the good potential of introducing superior air mobility within the Spanish market.”
Christian Bauer, CFO & CCO of Volocopter, added: “Volocopter’s mission to convey UAM to life now extends to Spain. We’re proud to affix its path to reworking the sustainability of aviation additionally in Spain as our eVTOLs present a extra environment friendly, secure, and quiet type of complementary aerial mobility for vacationers and enterprise travellers. For Volocopter, this pilot program is one other improbable alternative to grasp real-world wants and use circumstances of eVTOL, and to strengthen our accomplice ecosystem with Aena and UrbanV.”
