Air Taxi Groundwork Starts for Pilotless Vehicles in Australia

Boeing subsidiary Wisk Aero has signed an agreement with government-owned Airservices Australia to lay the groundwork for Wisk self-flying, electric air taxis in Australia.

The memorandum of understanding agreement includes evaluating initiatives for autonomous air mobility networks in Australia and exploring how advanced air mobility (AAM) and remotely supervised flying vehicles could be integrated into Australian airspace.

The agreement is expected to provide a forum for public discussions and knowledge sharing to improve practices relating to electric aerial vehicles (EAV) in the country.

“Australia has a history of aviation innovation and a vision for the future that includes advanced air mobility,” said Catherine MacGowan, Wisk vice president of APAC and air operations. “We’re grateful to share that vision with Airservices, and to contribute to an air traffic system that meets the needs of AAM services so we can bring safe, efficient air travel to communities in this region.”

The two organizations plan for workshops and simulations relating to eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicles in Australia.

Wisk Aero recently acquired Verocel, a 25-year-old software verification and validation (V&V) company that supports the certification of high-integrity aerospace software, an expected aid to the efforts of Wisk.

Related:Air Taxi Startup Owned by Boeing Acquires Software Company

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The Wisk Aero vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, which seats four people, has a fixed wingspan of 50 feet and cruises up to 4,000 feet above ground at speeds up to 135 mph.

The plane is self-flying with human oversight, according to the company.

Verocel has members in industry standards committees for high-integrity software including RTCA/Special Committee, EUROCAE working group and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) overarching properties working group.

The Verocel toolset provides a baseline for software certification requirements definition, tracking and FAA submittals. 

Boeing recently announced it invested $70 million more in Wisk as part of a larger investment to further its innovation efforts in Canada.

The Wisk investment is aimed at its Montreal engineering center, which is developing a self-flying, four-passenger eVTOL air taxi.

The overall investment of $176 million includes advanced landing gear research and the Aerospace Development Center in the New Quebec Espace Aero Innovation Zone.

Wisk Aero is also bringing its self-flying EAV to Texas as part of a  partnership agreement.

Related:Air Taxi Company Gets Another $70M from Boeing

Wisk and the city of Sugar Land agreed to jointly identify a location at the Sugar Land Regional Airport for the development of vertiport infrastructure for Wisk’s autonomous air taxi operations. 

This partnership aims to lay the foundation to establish a larger network across the Greater Houston region.

As part of the deal, Wisk is to provide advice on technical needs for EAV operations, including infrastructure, training, ground operational procedures and plans for potential site expansion.

Sugar Land intends to focus on integrating AAM into its plans and establish operational policies.

Boeing last year invested $450 million in Wisk and later acquired the startup. 

Boeing, Archer Aviation and Wisk have agreed on future collaboration on autonomous flight.

Wisk last year conducted a demonstration flight of its EAV at the airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, including hovering and wing-borne flight multiple times and included 360-degree turns in place.

Wisk has a partnership with Japan Airlines to provide flying taxis to Japan.

The infrastructure for flying vehicles is being developed globally. For example, Beta Technologies is installing EAV charging stations at airports, including Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and the Raleigh Executive Jetport in North Carolina.

Related:Boeing Self-Flying Taxis Coming to Greater Houston

And showrooms for the general public to see and purchase flying vehicles are being developed by Aeroauto Global with showrooms in Florida and another in development in Austin, Texas.