DroneDJ

In a major leap for drone logistics, EHang has successfully flown its VT20 drone on an intercity cargo route between Guangzhou and Zhuhai — two key cities in southern China’s bustling Greater Bay Area. The company’s electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft carried out a round trip covering over 103 miles, transporting fresh seafood and medical samples without a pilot onboard.

If you’ve ever found yourself staring at the clock in a yellow cab, stuck in gridlock en route to JFK or LaGuardia, Archer Aviation may have your dream solution: air taxis that can whisk you from Manhattan to the airport in just 5 to 15 minutes. Yes, minutes.

Lilium, the German eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft manufacturer, has shut down operations after failing to secure critical funding. This marks the company’s second insolvency filing in a matter of months, bringing an end to what was once seen as a revolutionary force in the urban air mobility sector.

German air taxi pioneer Volocopter has hit a financial snag, filing for insolvency as it struggles to secure new funding. The company, known for its cutting-edge electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, says operations will continue while it seeks investors to stay on track for a planned market debut in 2025.

Utah has embarked on an ambitious project to revolutionize air transportation in the state. Spearheaded by the innovative aerospace company 47G, in collaboration with the Utah Governor’s Office, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT), the Utah Inland Port Authority, and various industry stakeholders, Project Alta (Air Logistics Transportation Alliance) seeks to establish an advanced air mobility (AAM) system throughout Utah by 2034.

California electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developer Archer Aviation has signed an accord with South Korea’s transportation service company KakaoMobility to prepare air taxi services in the nation, worth about $250 million in plane sales.

German air electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developer Lilium has taken another step toward securing funding it needs to push its battery-fueled jet toward commercialization, with the announcement that German officials have resumed work toward freeing up €100 million ($108 million) in loans to the company.

The Smithsonian announced just before “May the Fourth” that it has added a Boeing Cargo Air Vehicle to its collection at the National Air and Space Museum. The drone, dressed up to look like a Star Wars X-Wing, was used to fly the first commercial operation of a “large eVTOL aircraft,” which took place at Disney World back in 2019.

Efforts to launch air taxi activities are really heating up for Volocopter, but not in a way Europe’s leading electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developer would like: a struggle to secure additional funding to complete certification and manufacturing of its craft.

China-based air taxi developer EHang has received crucial government certification to begin mass production of its EH216-S passenger-carrying pilotless aircraft. The company is the first eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) developer in the world to obtain this kind of regulatory validation for its aircraft.

Air taxi developer AutoFlight is moving swiftly toward commercialization of its Prosperity electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, delivering the first model of the battery-operated plane to a company customer in Japan before it’s even certified.

Air taxis, drones, and other electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are expected to begin regular operation across UK skies in 2026 and ascend from there, according to a government roadmap published this week.

UK drone services and air taxi infrastructure specialist Skyports says it has been commissioned to create “the UK’s first vertiport testbed” at a specialized facility about 65 miles northwest of London.

Air taxi developer AutoFlight is revving up to give fellow electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) plane maker EHang a run for its money in their domestic Chinese market, staging what it called the first inter-city flight ever by a next generation aircraft.

Emerging electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft used in air taxi transportation will generate billions of dollars in new activity – a major new boost to national economies that governments don’t want foreign companies to dominate. The most recent example of that defensive reflex of local aerial markets comes from the UK, where national hero Vertical Aerospace has received an additional $10.5 million in state support.

As part of the recent agreement securing the launch of air taxi services by Joby in Dubai, Skyports Infrastructure has been contracted to oversee the construction of vertiports the activity will require – a critical element that has tended to be overlooked in the excitement surrounding nearing next generation aviation.