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Volocopter Set to Launch Flying Taxis in Singapore Within the Next 2 Years

Germany-based Volocopter is an urban air mobility firm that is now targeting a commercial launch in Singapore around the year 2024. Once they become certified, they will begin by offering intra-city tourist flights within the Asian city state.
Volocopter eVTOL 6 photos
Photo: Volocopter
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According to their chief commercial officer, Christian Bauer, the company is “well on track to finalize” certification and get all the necessary operating licenses from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, as reported by FlightGlobal.

The company expects its Singapore business to generate nearly S$4.2 billion ($3.1 billion) in “cumulative economic benefits” by 2030, while also creating up to 1,300 jobs. Volocopter has already successfully completed its first manned EV take-off and landing (eVTOL) flight over downtown Singapore, which is why the latter was chosen as one of the first cities in which the air mobility firm will operate.

Since that fortuitous flight, Volocopter has been working with Singapore authorities and other local partners in a bid to roll out the service commercially – both in downtown Singapore as well as in the tourist island of Sentosa.

They will then focus on cross-border flights between Singapore and Malaysia and Indonesia, with Bauer also mentioning the Malaysian city of Johor Bahru as a possible destination.

In terms of logistics, Volocopter also want to use their VoloDrone to perform shore-to-ship parcel deliveries in Singapore, although this project still requires feasibility studies.

The German company will join a growing list of urban air mobility developers, such as Singapore’s ST Engineering and Airbus, although Bauer isn’t necessarily worried about the competition.

“I never speak... about competition, I speak about other market participants. [Firstly], if we [were] the only one, we would maybe do something wrong. So it’s good to have other players forming this new industry.”

“A lot of players going into that space gives credibility to this ecosystem and urban air mobility space,” concluded the CCO.
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About the author: Sergiu Tudose
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Sergiu got to experience both American and European car "scenes" at an early age (his father drove a Ford Fiesta XR2 supermini in the 80s). After spending over 15 years at local and international auto publications, he's starting to appreciate comfort behind the wheel more than raw power and acceleration.
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