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:

EASA has released the world's first comprehensive regulatory framework for urban air taxi (eVTOL) flight operations, encompassing airworthiness, air operations, flight crew licensing, and rules of the air.
The new rules stipulate that only pilots already holding an airplane or rotorcraft license can operate initial eVTOL air taxis, requiring them to obtain a specific "VTOL-capable aircraft type rating."
Initial air taxi services will operate on limited, predefined routes and a restricted number of vertiports, maintaining traditional "see and avoid" principles while anticipating a future transition to remotely piloted 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.