by Mitori Liu
Oct 11, 2022
Story brief:
In September, a global aerospace company, Kencoa, conducted a flight test for its electric air taxi in Jeju Island, South Korea, aiming at commercializing air services on the island to reduce road congestions.
Story in detailed description:
According to an article on newsbeezer (https://newsbeezer.com/vietnameng/koreas-electric-air-taxi-for-the-first-time-test-flight/), though the air taxi only contains one seat and allows a capacity of around 100kg, it is able to fly at a speed of 80km/h thanks to its 8 rotors. The electric vehicle’s first presentation was hasty due to strong wind, but more safety flight tests will be conducted in the future to guarantee security to its potential consumers. Due to increasing problems of road congestions, huge potential can be seen in commercial air service market, and Jeju intends to be the first place in Korea to realize commercialization of air taxis due to its qualified airport facilities and transportation infrastructure.
Implication:
Compared to the relationship between airplane, air taxi attracts customers by its flexibility and easiness to board within short distance. Therefore, air taxi developers should consider keeping these traits as the main features of this new transportation technology. Specifically, the air taxis may be designed to be able to park at any normal parking lots for cars to pick up customers. Besides, given the limited capacity of people, the air taxi should also contain some space for little luggage bags to level up convenience for its customer.