Proposed Air Taxi Regulations Reveal Possible Future of eVTOL

EASA releases world’s ‘first’ regulatory framework for air taxis operating in European cities.

Friday, July 01, 2022 at 02:00 PM ET

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The proposed operational regulatory framework for non-conventional VTOLs brings the European Union one small step closer to electric air taxis becoming a reality. [Courtesy: EASA]

Key Takeaways:

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has released the world's first comprehensive regulatory framework for urban air taxi (eVTOL) flight operations, covering airworthiness, air operations, flight crew licensing, and rules of the air.
The framework mandates that initially, only existing commercial airplane or helicopter pilots can operate eVTOLs, requiring them to add a specific "VTOL-capable aircraft type rating" to their current licenses.
Initial eVTOL services will be restricted to a limited number of predefined routes and vertiports, applying existing "see and avoid" principles for manned flights while also anticipating a future transition to autonomous operations.

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The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has released what it calls the world’s first comprehensive regulatory framework for urban air taxi flight operations covering “airworthiness, air operations, flight crew licensing, and rules of the air.”

The document, unveiled Thursday, remains open for public comment through this September, and it helps answer several critical questions pilots have long had about this entirely new emerging sector of aviation: electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The proposal brings the European Union one step closer to electric air taxis becoming a reality.