Lilium, the German aviation company developing an all-electric, vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL) for regional air mobility, has partnered with Lufthansa Aviation Training (LAT, member of the Lufthansa Group).
Together, Lilium and Lufthansa Aviation Training will develop a tailor made Pilot Sourcing and Training program to qualify pilots to fly the Lilium Jet.
The first phase of this innovative program consists of bespoke Lilium type rating training certification for qualified commercial pilots. It will harness technologies including Mixed and Virtual Reality (MR/VR) opening possibilities to recreate the program worldwide and enabling a stable pipeline of qualified pilots to support the growth of the company and the industry.
Lufthansa Aviation Training will provide expertise into the training and development of competencies necessary to fulfil the need for a new field of piloting. This compliments Lilium’s expertise in eVTOLs and the regional air mobility service it is building. The training program will be the first of its kind globally and a significant milestone on Lilium’s road to launch.
Lilium and Lufthansa Aviation Training will also jointly work together with EASA (EU) and FAA (USA) regulatory authorities on certification.
Remo Gerber, Chief Operating Officer, Lilium said, “Opening a new professional segment for pilots of the future is a challenge we have long been excited to undertake and Lufthansa Aviation Training is the perfect partner.
“Their insights, experience and dedication to forward-thinking training concepts ensure that our pilots will be selected and trained to the highest calibre, an industry standard which we will establish through this partnership.
Lilium partners with Orlando to establish first vertiport
The first hub location for a high-speed electric air mobility network in America will be launched by 2025 in Lake Nona, Orlando, Florida.
Lilium, Tavistock Development Company and the City of Orlando have announced the country’s first urban and regional air mobility network as well as Lilium’s first US network location.
Lake Nona’s central location provides the opportunity to connect more than 20 million Floridians within a 186-mile radius, serving several major cities including Orlando and Tampa. The Lake Nona vertiport will create more than 100 jobs in the Orlando area, with hundreds more to follow across Florida.
The Florida network forms part of Lilium’s vision of bringing regional air mobility to locations across the globe.
The Lilium Jet aircraft can travel further and faster with distances of up to 186 miles (300km) within one hour on a single charge, enabling the connection of entire regions, creating significant economic impact for cities and their residents as well as increased access to industry, culture and nature.
Tavistock’s capabilities in design, planning, construction and development will support Lilium’s efforts in building this scalable, high-speed regional transportation system, across major locations in Florida. At its core, Lake Nona is designed to meet a higher standard of smarter, sustainable living, an ethos which closely matches that of Lilium.
Lake Nona provides an unmatched location contiguous to the Orlando International Airport, through which pass more than half of the region’s 75 million annual visitors.
City of Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said, “For this new technology to truly reshape the transportation ecosystem and benefit Orlando residents long-term, it is going to take a true partnership between cities, developers and transportation operators.
“We have been focused on finding the right partners to be a global leader in the advanced air mobility space. I’m thrilled that our progressive and collaborative environment has created an opportunity for this unique partnership between the City of Orlando, Lilium and Lake Nona to invest in the expansion of safe, efficient and environmentally friendly transportation options throughout one of the fastest-growing regions in the country.”
The Vertiport Design
Lilium and Tavistock have together created a vertiport architecture for its hub location that is both functional and aesthetically unique and resembles the iconic art within Lake Nona.
A variety of standardised vertiport designs will allow flexibility so that sites can be uniquely assembled or incorporated into existing transport structures in both urban and suburban developments.
The vertiport locations are subject to approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and other regulatory agencies. The Lilium jet is under certification from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the FAA and will operate under existing regulatory frameworks.
