UNITED STATES

New rule means Americans are closer to having electric powered air taxis

Oct 30, 2024, 6:00 AM | Updated: 12:22 pm

FILE: Lift Aircraft Inc.'s Hexa electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft sits parked ...

FILE: Lift Aircraft Inc.'s Hexa electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft sits parked during a demonstration held as a part of the SusHi Tech Tokyo 2024 event on May 17, 2024 in Tokyo, Japan. (Tomohiro Ohsumi/ Getty Images)

(Tomohiro Ohsumi/ Getty Images)

Federal regulators gave a strong push to electric-powered air taxis last week. They issued a final rule for operating the aircraft and how pilots will be trained to fly them.

The head of the Federal Aviation Administration, Mike Whitaker, said the rule recognizes air taxis as an entirely new type of aircraft. And that they will soon join airplanes and helicopters in the sky.

What are air taxis (powered-lift aircraft)?

These aircraft take off and land vertically, like helicopters, but fly like fixed-wing planes. Many companies are working to get them on the market. But officials have held the aircraft back because of the lack of clarity over regulations to govern their use.

The Utah angle:  What’s the future of Utah transportation? One expert says air taxis

Whitaker said the FAA is stressing safety as it works to fold the new aircraft into the nation’s airspace. He said “powered-lift aircraft” are the first new category of aircraft in nearly 80 years. He also said the rule will allow for their widespread operation.

Air taxi supporters call them a cleaner alternative to passenger planes that burn jet fuel. So far, however, current technology limits their size. That likely means companies will most often use them in urban areas. Companies envision carrying people and cargo.

A global leadership role for the US

One of the companies in the new field, California-based Joby Aviation, praised the FAA regulation. CEO JoeBen Bevirt said the rules “will ensure the U.S. continues to play a global leadership role in the development and adoption of clean flight.”

Airlines see air taxis as a way to deliver passengers to airports. Delta Air Lines said in 2022 it would invest $60 million in Joby, and this month Toyota announced a $500 million investment. United Airlines is backing another California-based company, Archer Aviation, with an order for 200 aircraft that Archer said could be worth $1 billion with an option for $500 million more.
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Associated Press editors corrected this story to reflect that the news was announced Tuesday, Oct. 22, not Wednesday, Oct. 30.

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New rule means Americans are closer to having electric powered air taxis