Volocopter flies at Paris Air Forum

Urban air mobility (UAM) developer Volocopter flew its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft Volocopter 2X at Le Bourget Airfield during the Paris Air Forum, June 21, 2021. With the flight demonstration of the Volocopter 2X and the VoloCity model onsite, the German UAM developer demonstrated the progress it’s making to introduce eVTOL aircraft.

The 3-minute remote controlled flight was the first public flight demonstration of an electrically powered air taxi in France. It gave the public a real-life experience of what an air taxi looks and sounds like in operations. Attendees watched as the Volocopter 2X flew a 500m route at speeds up to 30km/h and 30m high along the Le Bourget Airfield. This flight marks the beginning of a multi-step test and market development campaign in cooperation with the French Civil Aviation Authority (DGAC – Direction générale de l’aviation civile) to safely bring electric air taxis to the Île-de-France region. Attendees could sit inside the VoloCity model for a first-hand experience and detailed explanation of the benefits of electric air taxi services.

“The first flight today in Paris highlights Volocopter’s commitment to bring air taxi services to this region in time for the 2024 Olympic Games,” says Florian Reuter, Volocopter CEO. “The alliance of the Paris region, Groupe ADP [formerly Aéroports de Paris (ADP); operates Paris’ international airports], and RATP Groupe [Paris’ state-owned public transport operator and maintainer] and their intent to bring electric air taxis to France is a stellar example of the collaborative approach we see to be the most successful for adding this exciting category of mobility to cities globally.”

Volocopter was announced as the first vehicle and operations partner for the launch of the UAM industrial branch in Paris in September 2020. Now the company is planning to open a local office and is recruiting staff and expanding local partnerships to ensure the new UAM solutions meet local demands. Volocopter is also working on an agreement with Groupe ADP and RATP Groupe to collaborate for the 2024 Olympics to enhance regional connectivity in a meaningful way and showcase the benefits and key attributes of urban air mobility.

Volocopter is well advanced in the certification process with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for commercial launch. As the first and only eVTOL developer with Design Organization Approval (DOA) from EASA, Volocopter aims to introduce sustainable UAM solutions to cities around the world. Volocopter’s approach to introducing these services is to create a UAM ecosystem in which passengers and goods connect with cities via VoloCity (aircraft for intra-city connections), VoloConnect (aircraft for city-suburb connections), VoloDrone (aircraft for cargo transport), and VoloPorts (take-off and landing sites) which are all fully integrated on the digital platform VoloIQ (real-time digital twin of the ecosystem).