American Airlines-backed Air Taxi Inches Closer to Type Certification

American Airlines-backed electric air taxi developer Vertical Aerospace has been approved for concurrent type certification by European and UK aviation regulators.

Thom Patterson

Thursday, April 21, 2022 at 01:37 PM ET

Verified

VX4, Vertical Aerospace’s 4 passenger, single-pilot eVTOL air taxi is expected to enter service in 2025. [Courtesy: Vertical Aerospace]

Key Takeaways:

Vertical Aerospace received concurrent type certification approval from EASA and the U.K.'s CAA for its VX4 electric air taxi, aiming to launch a full test flight campaign this year and enter service in 2025.
The company is strengthening its regulatory efforts, hiring a former EASA certification director and securing CAA competency approvals, with plans to also seek FAA type certification for U.S. market entry.
Vertical Aerospace claims to have the largest pre-order book in the eVTOL market, totaling $5.4 billion for 1,350 VX4 aircraft, with key partners including American Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.

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American Airlines-backed electric air taxi developer Vertical Aerospace (NYSE: EVTL) has been approved for concurrent type certification by European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the U.K.’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The London-based company announced the news Thursday, as it works toward launching a full test flight campaign later this year for its VX4 electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi.