A world of flying vehicles like the 1960s sitcom “The Jetsons” may be closer than you think, as US companies, including several startups, are developing electric air taxis that aim to take cars off the road and move traffic to air, reports CNBC.

Commercial airlines, in particular, are investing in this type of technology to make journeys to and from the airport shorter and faster for consumers.

In October, Delta Air Lines joined the list of airlines backing electric car startups, investing $60 million in Joby Aviation, a company developing electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft designed to operate as air taxis.

In 2021, when Joby announced its plan to launch its Uber-like air taxis by 2024, it drew criticism from industry analysts about its ability to launch by then.

But Delta’s investment in Joby is a five-year partnership to operate eVTOL exclusively on Delta’s network.

United Airlines is also partnering with Swedish startup Heart Aerospace to have electric planes flying on regional routes by 2030, adding to the airline’s two other eVTOL investments.

One is $15 million with Eve Air Mobility for 200 aircraft, and the other is $10 million with Archer Aviation for 100 eVTOLs.

American Airlines invested $25 million in British Vertical Aerospace with an order for 50 aircraft.

Air taxis may enter the markets in the 2030s.

Although major airlines are entering into agreements with global startups, it is important to remember that they are conditional. That depends on the certification of those planes and how quickly companies can produce them, said Savanti Sit, managing director of equity research covering global airlines and mobility at Raymond James.

Once those aircraft are certified and production ramps up, Sitt said the potential size of the market depends largely on how close eVTOL companies can get to consumers.

“Firstly, eVTOLs are supposed to replace your personal car. But it’s going to be different for people depending on where the eVTOLs are going to be,” Seeth said.

The companies want eVTOLs to use existing infrastructure to operate, such as creating “vertistops” where planes sit on top of buildings in urban areas for short-haul flights, or “vertiports” that use regional airports for longer-haul flights, about 100 miles

If companies can build vertistops and vertiports close to consumers in residential areas, then the size of the market could be large, Seeth said.

“We think you’ll see small eVTOL operations starting in 2025, with certification hopefully starting in 2024. But to see a lot of aircraft flying overhead is more likely to be in the 2030s,” said Sit.

As airlines face cost and affordability challenges to become more sustainable, investing in eVTOLs is one measure they can try to offset carbon emissions, said Beau Roy, senior managing director at FTI Consulting, which specializes in the aviation industry.

(Source: news.ro)