FutureFlight

Lilium is partnering with private aircraft fractional ownership pioneer NetJets and its fellow Berkshire Hathaway company, FlightSafety International. The agreement could see NetJets marketing shares in a special four-seat premium version of its Lilium Jet and also serving as an operating partner for shuttle services in markets such as Florida.

The first H2-Aero Symposium & Workshop will bring together multiple companies pioneering hydrogen propulsion technology for aviation with government and industry leaders seeking to promote the green fuel's adoption for new aircraft. The latest Vertical Flight Society event follows its recent Transformative Vertical Flight conference, which heard from another strong hydrogen advocate, Anita Sengupta Anita Sengupta whose HydroPlane start-up is working on plans for a 1-MW powertrain that will support various types of electric aircraft.

Phenix Solutions is aiming to complete FAA type certification of the remotely piloted Ultra 2XL eVTOL in 2023, with a view to it being used for a variety of civil and defense applications. It is expected to be able to operate beyond visual line of sight, carrying around 2,000 pounds of payloads on missions of up to 200 miles.

New funds from Korea's WP Investments and Honeywell Aerospace will help Volocopter bring its family of eVTOL aircraft to market. The German manufacturer also now has a joint venture with Seoul-based WP to make preparations to launch air taxi services in South Korean cities.

The National Business Aviation Association and its AAM Roundtable have worked with the U.S. Congress and federal agencies to help address infrastructure and operational challenges associated with advanced air mobility.

NetJets markets fractional ownership shares in private jets and is now planning to add Lilium's six-passenger eVTOL aircraft to its portfolio. Under a provisional agreement, it may also become an operating partner in the manufacturer's planned flight network in Florida.

The FAA and the UK's Civil Aviation Authority have said that they will collaborate on efforts to certify eVTOL aircraft. An agreement announced this week will build on existing bilateral air safety arrangements between the two countries, making it easier for manufacturers and operators to get approvals validated on either side of the Atlantic.

Manfred Hader, from Roland Berger's aerospace consultancy team, says that fever pitch excitement around advanced air mobility 2021's deluge of investment might now have subsided. He and other experts speaking at this week's Global Urban & Advanced Air Summit feel that it could now take until around 2025 or 2026 for the true commercial potential of the sector to be visible.

The latest advanced air mobility agreement with the city of Miami involves eVTOL developer Supernal. The subsidiary of Korean carmaker Hyundai says it creates a mechanism for the city to work with industry and community stakeholders to develop “inclusive and forward-thinking policies” to promote the establishment of a sophisticated network of eVTOL aircraft operations.

Recent legislation in the U.S., such as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, has established funding and regulatory paths to support the rollout and adoption of new forms of air transportation, such as those promised by eVTOL aircraft. According to Diana Cooper, global head of policy and regulations at Hyundai’s eVTOL division, Supernal, regulators are at last starting to deal with transportation needs at a multimodal level that could see advanced air mobility become a valued addition to national infrastructure.