Volocopter
The Case for Urban Air Transportation
The next decade is forecast to be the greatest period of urban migration in human history. By 2030, more than 60 % of the world’s population will live in cities. Ground infrastructure, which is already operating at full capacity in many areas, is struggling to keep up with this urban growth. We believe that one answer to the challenges of urbanization is to take to the sky and unleash air travel in urban environments as a viable alternative to ground transportation.
In this article we will make a case for why we at Volocopter believe that we are on the cusp of a technological revolution enabling urban air mobility (UAM) at scale. We will focus on the requirements for the urban air taxi mission and discuss how we specifically designed the Volocopter, our electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, with this mission in mind.
It is important to note that, in this discussion, we will focus on the intra-city transportation use case: flying passengers within cities, where the greatest pain points will be alleviated. We will not be addressing the requirements for high-speed regional shuttles, which will ferry passengers between metropolitan regions.
The Renaissance of Electric Flight
Before diving in, we want to reflect on the renaissance underway in electric propulsion, the technology that will unlock urban air mobility.
The concept of electric propulsion in aviation is nearly as old as aviation itself. The first electric-powered aircraft debuted in 1917 (the tethered PKZ-1) and electric aviation has been a hobbyist’s alternative in the interim years. Now, with the advancements in multirotor distributed electric propulsion systems and the sophisticated controls to manage them, electric propulsion has finally become a viable alternative to hydrocarbon-based systems.
The Urban Air Taxi Mission
The mission of the urban air taxi is to transport passengers and luggage from point A to B within a defined urban metropolitan area at a price that is competitive with alternative transportation modes.
In order to accomplish this mission, an eVTOL will need to at least address the requirements in the non-exhaustive list below.
- Safety & Certification: Urban air taxis need to be as safe as any other commercial aircraft and consequently be designed to meet equivalent safety standards.
- Noise Emissions: In order to fly in the city and take-off/land in populated areas, the urban air taxi will have to comply with demanding noise restrictions to achieve public acceptance.
- Range & Speed: The air taxi needs to be able to cover the most popular high-traffic routes in major cities, like the airport to city-center route. These trips should be covered at a reasonably high speed in order to save time compared to ground transportation alternatives.
- Operating Costs: To enable a viable and scalable business that addresses a meaningful customer base, air taxi operating costs should be low enough to offer competitively-priced transportation services.
- Number of Seats: The number of passenger seats is a key design driver and needs to match the needs of the urban air taxi mission.
- Design for Usability: Passengers need to be able to embark, travel, and disembark comfortably and safely. This will entail design requirements for cabin noise levels, vibration, climatic conditioning, perceived safety, etc.
We will address each of these requirements in detail below and elaborate on how Volocopter addresses them in its development of a viable urban air taxi product.
