Flying Car Company Partners With Japanese Subway Operator

Japanese eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) vehicle maker SkyDrive and subway operator Osaka Metro have signed an agreement to consider using eVTOL vehicles in the Osaka area.

SkyDrive and Osaka Metro plan to use electric aerial vehicles (EAV) in practical applications in Japan, including vertiport operations for takeoffs and landings.

Osaka Metro, which also invested in SkyDrive, operates eight subway lines and a driverless tram and carries more than 2 million passengers a day.

The subway operator already was integrating different subways, buses and taxis in the Osaka area and was selected as the operator of a vertiport outside the Expo site in Osaka.

SkyDrive is scheduled to participate in the advanced air mobility (AAM) Smart Mobility Expo project in 2025

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently accepted a type certification application from SkyDrive, which was submitted via Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB).

SkyDrive aims to obtain FAA type certification along with its expected JCAB type certification in 2026 or later.

SkyDrive established a U.S. subsidiary in 2023 in preparation for its entry into the U.S. market.

The EAV maker has a strategic alliance with Volatus Infrastructure and the two companies have been working on an advanced mobility infrastructure in South Carolina, the U.S. home base for SkyDrive.

Related:Flying Car Company Seeks FAA Certification; Tokyo Based

SkyDrive recently agreed to sell five of its three-seat flying vehicles to a private charter service operator in Augusta, Georgia.

SkyDrive and Bravo Air also formed a partnership to develop use cases from Augusta Regional Airport to scale AAM in the region.

The Bravo Air deal expands SkyDrive beyond South Carolina and into Georgia.

SkyDrive intends to establish an EAV air taxi network connecting Augusta Regional Airport to destinations across the region.

SkyDrive has started production of its flying vehicle at a Suzuki manufacturing plant in Shizuoka, Japan.

The SkyDrive SD-05 vehicle, which SkyDrive refers to as a flying car, is being built by Sky Works, the SkyDrive manufacturing division, in partnership with Suzuki.

The Suzuki manufacturing plant has the capability to produce 100 of the three-seater EAVs per year.

SkyDrive recently agreed to sell its EAVs to an aerial tourism association in Japan and received a preorder for vehicles from the MASC General Incorporated Association, a group dedicated to promoting aerial tourism in Setouchi Islands in western Japan.

SkyDrive and MASC agreed to work together to develop commercial operations and explore potential suburban routes for the SkyDrive SD-05 flying vehicle. 

Related:Flying Car Company Sells Air Taxis to Charter Service

Other showrooms for EAVs are in preparation, such as those by Florida-based Aeroauto Global, which has two being readied in Florida and one being developed in Austin, Texas. 

A showroom also has been opened in Germany by EAV developer Pal-V.

SkyDrive recently partnered with the Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO) to develop high-speed charging facilities for EAVs with the first station planned for this year.

Tokyo-based SkyDrive and KEPCO started working together in 2022 leading to the new joint development project.

KEPCO plans to enter the AAM charging infrastructure business and has started accepting pre-orders from domestic and international customers for its charging structures.

SkyDrive last year received $82 million in a grant from the Japanese government, when the country’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry selected SkyDrive for the Next Generation Air Mobility Field, part of an innovation promotion project.

The grant is a Japanese government initiative to support startup companies working on advanced technologies that address challenges in society.

SkyDrive’s stated vision is “to create a future where everyone has access to eVTOLs as their daily transportation in Japan and across the world.”

Related:Flying Car Production Starts at Suzuki Plant; 100 Vehicles a Year

SkyDrive has a deal to sell up to 50 EAVs to Solyu in Korea, which is in the business of aircraft leasing and financing and aims to use EAVs to aid the severe traffic congestion there.

SkyDrive was established in 2018 and conducted its first crewed flight test in Japan in 2019.