Urban Air Mobility

A conceptual illustration of an eVTOL in flight above a city.

What Can UAM Operators Do to Ensure They Gain Passengers’ Acceptance of Air Taxis?

Communicate, communicate, communicate

A study conducted by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) reveals what is and isn’t important to gain passengers’ acceptance of urban air mobility (UAM) air taxi services. While the flights were simulated, the sentiments expressed were real. The researchers set up a mixed reality (MR) Air Taxi Simulator merging a real-world environment with a computer-generated…

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So, You Want to Build a Vertiport. Here’s What It Will Cost to Build and Operate One

With AAM on the horizon, places from which to take off and land your eVTOLs and UAVs are a key component of the infrastructure

Whether for passenger transportation, package delivery, emergency services, military, civil defense missions, industrial, or agricultural purposes, the Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) transportation sector in development will need departure and arrival facilities for the aircraft operating in this space. According to a report entitled “The global vertiport market map and forecast 2024–2028,” compiled by the Global AAM/UAM…

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Passengers onboard an eVTOL

What Can UAM Operators Do to Ensure They Gain Passengers’ Acceptance of Air Taxis?

Communicate, communicate, communicate

A study conducted by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) reveals what is and isn’t important to gain passengers’ acceptance of urban air mobility (UAM) air taxi services. While the flights were simulated, the sentiments expressed were real. The researchers set up a mixed reality (MR) Air Taxi Simulator merging a real-world environment with a computer-generated…

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Give the People What They Want — Integrated Air Mobility-as-a-Service

Commuters expressed their commuting preferences in this study from Hiroshima University

As urban air mobility prepares for takeoff in cities around the world, it’s important to understand that this new iteration of the transportation landscape doesn’t exist in a vacuum. The people who will use the services will need to understand how to integrate it into their travel plans. To learn more about these consumers’ preferences,…

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Doing the Math: Optimizing Routing and Scheduling for UAM Fleet Management Using Quantum Annealing

A quantum leap for UAM routing and scheduling.

Writing in Scientific Reports, seven researchers from Japan’s Tohuku University and Sumitomo Corporation proposed a plan to optimize how urban air mobility (UAM) operators, infrastructure managers, and others in the UAM ecosystem manage routing and scheduling using quantum annealing. Quantum annealing, a quantum computing process, uses quantum fluctuations to find the best solution to an optimization…

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View of a vertiport from above.

Vertiports vs. Heliports — An overview

Emily Lambert, a project manager with Texas Department of Transportation recently published a guide that will be of interest and use to DOT engineers and planners as the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) transitions from a standalone Vertiport Design Advisory Circular to a Unified Vertical Lift Infrastructures AC by 2027. Find the guide here.

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