Volocopter is to launch air taxi services in Singapore after two years of close collaboration with the city.
Working together with the Economic Development Board of Singapore (EDB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), Volocopter plans to make air taxi services a reality in the Southeast Asian city-state within the next three years.
In preparation for the launch, Volocopter has founded Volocopter Asia Holding and hired Hon Lung Chu as its Head of Asia Pacific in Singapore.
In October 2019, Volocopter completed an air taxi demonstration flight in the heart of Singapore over the Marina Bay area, giving observers the unique opportunity to have a sense of what Urban Air Mobility will look like.
Before launching the services in Singapore, Volocopter will obtain the necessary regulatory approvals, including those from CAAS and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
Volocopter’s regulatory approvals will be facilitated by CAAS and EASA’s Working Arrangement on Airworthiness Certification, which allows for validation of type certification to be done concurrently and in close coordination. To achieve this, Volocopter will, together with stakeholders, also be conducting comprehensive tests, flight trials, evaluations, and certification before approval to commence commercial air taxi operations can be granted.
“Singapore is renowned for its leading role in adapting and living new technologies,” said Florian Reuter, CEO of Volocopter.
“Our successful cooperation with EDB, MOT, and CAAS on our previous flight has shown that there is no better place in Asia to launch our electric air taxi services than in Singapore.
“The city’s research institutes conducting R&D play an integral part in this. Topics like route validation for autonomous operations, material science, and research regarding battery technology are very important for our long-term business success.”
The first route in the Lion City is expected to be a tourist route over the southern waters, offering breath-taking views of the Marina Bay skyline. Follow-on connections may include cross-border flights.
Volocopter will build up a team of 50 pilots, engineers, operation specialists, and business managers in the next three years. The company is expected to hire over 200 full-time employees in Singapore to manage a network of Singapore routes by 2026.