This new type of aircraft is called an eVTOL, or a flying taxi. It can take off without needing a runway and it has the capability to travel large distances, like airplanes do.
There are tons of videos on the internet of flying taxis in action. However, it’s not clear where you can ride them just yet. Recently, a regulation bill was passed that made it possible for these types of vehicles to fly in US airspace.
Regulators in the United States recently passed a rule that allows manufacturers of hybrids, or “blends”, machines to list these aircrafts and produce them according to exactly what’s written in the rule.
Passing this rule was crucial to the flying taxi industry, which has seen major investments in recent years. Now, these companies can begin offering flights to customers and giving people a new way to travel.
Over the last few years, many people have started to call flying taxis the ‘transportation of the future.’ Following media hype, major airlines have ordered flying taxis for their own use, while investors are pouring money into startups that promise to offer those services.
What makes an eVTOL aircraft different from planes and helicopters? Well, as the name suggests, these aircraft can take off without needing a runway. In fact, they even work similarly to airplanes in that they can fly long distances.
Unlike helicopters and airships, which use liquid fuel that creates a lot of noise, flying taxis use an electric motor which produces low sound for better intra-city travel.
The Europeans might be receiving flying taxis even sooner than the Americans, with plans to debut them in the 2024 Olympics.
Though the country is not fully ready to accommodate AI technology, analysts in America predict that it will be operational by 2025. This is because a lot of regulation needs to be done before these machines can be used in the country.
With regulation issues in the US, airlines from the country are actually one of the most active airlines in the flying taxi space.
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