en.Wedoany.com Reported - New York City is converting existing helipads into dedicated takeoff and landing sites for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, preparing for the era of urban air mobility (UAM). The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) revealed that two helipads—the East 34th Street Heliport in Manhattan and the Downtown Skyport near Wall Street—are being transformed into bases for electric air taxi operations.
NYCEDC requires that once the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) formally certifies commercial air taxi operations, the operators of these two facilities must complete the construction of electric charging infrastructure within one year. The state-owned Downtown Skyport is independently building the infrastructure needed for electric air taxi operations. The construction of vertiports requires collaboration among electric air taxi operators, local power companies, and existing helicopter operators. The East 34th Street Heliport is operated by VertiPorts by Atlantic.
Kevin Cox, CEO of VertiPorts by Atlantic, stated in an interview with Smart Cities Dive that the company is advancing vertiport facility construction without disrupting the commercial air taxi operation timeline, and expects some bases to achieve actual eVTOL air taxi operations in the second half of this year. Charging infrastructure construction is the core of the vertiport conversion effort, with the ultimate goal of assessing the scale of charging equipment that can be installed at each vertiport, securing the necessary power, and building multiple charging systems to support various air taxi models.
eVTOL operating companies Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation are collaborating with existing airlines to launch commercial air taxi services this year through the FAA's "eVTOL Integration Pilot Program." The FAA has selected eight regions across six U.S. states, including New York and New Jersey, as pilot project sites to validate initial commercial operation models. Cox noted that inquiries about introducing air taxis from multiple cities in the U.S. and overseas continue to increase, and the FAA pilot program will become a significant turning point for the industry. He predicted that cities that start preparing now will be the first to benefit from air taxis.
In April of this year, Joby Aviation conducted an actual air taxi test flight in New York. The aircraft took off from John F. Kennedy International Airport and sequentially flew over the Downtown Skyport, West 30th Street Heliport, and East 34th Street Heliport in Manhattan. These routes are expected to be designated as operational routes after commercialization. Due to railway tunnel construction at Penn Station, the West 30th Street Heliport is currently operating a temporary takeoff and landing site on a barge dock. Last year, Joby acquired the passenger business division of urban air mobility company Blade Air Mobility, along with the Manhattan terminal network. Initial commercial air taxi services will primarily focus on routes connecting airports and city centers, but are expected to expand to short-distance intra-city travel services in the long term.
Cox predicted that over the next five years, the air taxi market will begin to truly grow in regions including the U.S. Northeast, Florida, Northern and Southern California, and Texas.
