Boeing Becomes Sole Owner of Air Taxi Manufacturer Wisk Aero

Facing slowdown in 737 Max deliveries, aviation giant takes full ownership of eVTOL developer.

Jack Daleo

Thursday, June 01, 2023 at 02:22 PM ET

Verified

Wisk’s Generation 6 air taxi prototype was unveiled in October. [Courtesy: Wisk Aero]

Key Takeaways:

Boeing has acquired full ownership of Wisk Aero, an autonomous electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi developer it previously co-owned with Kitty Hawk.
Wisk is pursuing a unique strategy by focusing on fully autonomous eVTOLs, which means a more deliberate path to FAA certification and a later market entry compared to its competitors.
Boeing has provided substantial financial and technological backing to Wisk, including a $450 million investment, to develop its Generation 6 autonomous air taxi prototype.
Wisk's autonomous design faces additional regulatory hurdles, as the FAA has yet to standardize certification requirements for self-flying air taxis, potentially delaying its commercial launch.

See a mistake? Contact us.

As it contends with a slowdown in 737 Max deliveries at present, Boeing also has its eye on the future.

According to reports this week, the aerospace powerhouse is now the sole owner of Wisk Aero, the self-flying air taxi manufacturer it has been backing since 2019, alongside Google co-founder Larry Page’s Kitty Hawk Corp. Kitty Hawk ceased operations last year but continued to invest in the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft developer.