Eve Urban Air Mobility has started cooperating with commercial partners and government entities to develop a concept of operations (Conops) for Urban Air Mobility (UAM) in Rio de Janeiro. In a statement, Eve said the project’s first test will happen by the end of the year in the Brazilian city, using conventional helicopters to simulate Eve’s planned four-passenger eVTOL aircraft, which the company expects to begin commercial service in 2026.
Under Eve's coordination, the initiative brings together ANAC (Brazil's National Civil Aviation Agency) and DECEA (Brazil's Department of Airspace Control) to assess the existing infrastructure and air traffic management (ATM) organization to safely allow for UAM operations.
The Conops collaboration includes partners such as Helisul Aviation, one of the largest helicopter operators in Latin America; Skyports, a company that designs, builds, and operates vertiports; Flapper, an independent platform for on-demand flights; and EDP, one of the largest companies in the energy sector. The project also involves Beacon, an EmbraerX spinoff with a platform that connects the ecosystem of aviation maintenance services, and Atech, an Embraer Group company responsible for the development, implementation, and support of civil and military ATM systems.
"We want to explore new and practical concepts to facilitate the safe introduction of the urban air mobility industry in Brazil. In this initial stage, we will describe the main characteristics and requirements of the ecosystem, from the perspective of the users, partners, entities, and government departments involved," said Eve CEO André Stein. "According to concept evolution, we will conceive how to enable the purpose of democratizing urban air mobility in a safe, economical, and accessible way."
Other recent news involving Eve includes a July 15 announcement that the company has begun working with energy group EDP to develop electrical charging infrastructure for eVTOL operations. Under the memorandum of understanding, the two companies can conduct research on topics including battery technology, charging systems, management of charging points, and payment methods.
Also in July, Eve said it reached an agreement with Latin American charter booker Flapper under which it plans to provide up to 25,000 flight hours in its all-electric eVTOL vehicles. The manufacturer previously announced similar service provision commitments with the U.S-based charter platform Blade. It also holds aircraft purchase commitments from ridesharing service Halo and Helisul Aviation.
