The air taxi manufacturer Volocopter has officially opened its production facility, including the take-off and landing area in Bruchsal near Karlsruhe. “From this hangar we will send our aircraft to the world’s metropolises and open up new avenues for travel and transport,” said Volocopter CEO Dirk Hoke. “I am sure that we will be the first in the world to fly commercially.”
Air taxis are new types of aircraft that take off and land vertically. Approval from the EU Agency for Aviation Safety for the first model is expected by mid-2024, and the aircraft should take off at the Olympic Games in Paris. One shift could produce 50 pieces a year in the future.
Federal Transport Minister Volker Wissing (FDP) spoke of a pioneering achievement that Volocopter operates. “We are at the beginning of a new era here,” said Wissing. Flights would be quieter and more climate-friendly thanks to battery-powered aircraft. And while you can hardly calculate travel times by car in big cities, flights can be calculated reliably. This is also important for medical transport, for example.
