Tag: Singapore
Singapore to Develop Aerial Mobility Service with Airbus
Singapore and Airbus have secured a deal to lay the foundations for potential services with both passenger and larger cargo carrying air vehicles throughout Singapore. The island-nation-state’s plan to improve regional connectivity builds on an earlier agreement established in 2016 between Airbus and Singapore’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAS) for proof-of-concept trials of a cargo-carrying Skyways unmanned air system. Under the memorandum of...

Singapore to Develop Aerial Mobility Service with Airbus

Singapore and Airbus have secured a deal to lay the foundations for potential services with both passenger and larger cargo carrying air vehicles throughout Singapore. The island-nation-state’s plan to improve regional connectivity builds on an earlier agreement established in 2016 between Airbus and Singapore’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAAS) for proof-of-concept trials of a cargo-carrying Skyways unmanned air system.
Under the memorandum of understanding, Airbus and CAAS will develop an unmanned traffic management (UTM) system to support the early phase of the air mobility service. The two will also collaborate on developing a framework for safety and operating standards as well as study issues such as public acceptance. The framework will be based upon many of the learnings that have come out of Airbus’s Skyway program, which studied the ability to pre-program safe aerial routes for autonomous drones to execute short-range parcel deliveries.
According to Jean-Brice Dumont, executive vice president of engineering for Airbus, “Skyways was a laboratory for UAM at a smaller scale. Now we need to go the extra mile, so with this agreement we are doing that. There are still questions of the business case and technology. In terms of business, we can see an appetite in the market, even though it’s a niche right now for more emergency needs where time is of the essence or where its value-added, like shore-to-ship deliveries.”
Technology studies will focus on traffic management as well as “the overall system, guarantees, performance, safety and cost,” says Dumont. “We are flying with a couple of vehicles and in that sense, we are already there. But when you are flying with 20 or 100 vehicles at the same time along given routes then you are defining a system and that’s what we are doing with UTM.” The vehicles that Airbus plans to implement in this program will likely be similar to what has already been developed and tested by the manufacturer. Just last month, the CityAirbus made its first untethered flight in Donauwörth, Germany, and the Vahana wrapped up its flight testing Pendleton Airport in Oregon.

Airbus Vahana amidst a test flight at Pendleton Airport in Oregon, USA. Credit // Airbus
This memorandum of understanding between Singapore and Airbus mirrors a similar agreement between Bell, Japan Airlines and Sumitomo Corp. to explore on-demand air mobility services in Japan. The partnership was announced just days prior, and centers on the use of the recently unveiled Nexus 4EX eVTOL, which plans to address air mobility studies as well as the required infrastructure and regulatory environment.
Related: Bell Unveils All-Electric Nexus 4EX at CES 2020
Why it’s important: Top urban air vehicle manufacturers are beginning to seek opportunities around the globe to stand up small-scale implementations of their technologies in a realistic environment. These applications and opportunities are signaling the increased readiness of the vehicles to be tested in a realistic environment in which the services can eventually be scaled to fulfill commercial passenger transportation needs. Incremental steps in these introductory applications are the key to proving the safety of the technology and garnering the required public acceptance in order to eventually make aerial mobility widespread.
Source // Aviation Week
Singapore’s Air Taxi Volume Expected To Reach 3,000 By 2025
Singapore plans to improve its already world-class transportation system by welcoming U.S. firm Bell Helicopter and Germany’s Volocopter to introduce their products and services to the island city-state. Bell Helicopter air taxis are expected to take flight in Singapore in 2025, while Volocopter is looking to launch air taxi demonstration flights there as soon as the second half of this...

Singapore’s Air Taxi Volume Expected To Reach 3,000 By 2025

Singapore plans to improve its already world-class transportation system by welcoming U.S. firm Bell Helicopter and Germany’s Volocopter to introduce their products and services to the island city-state.
Bell Helicopter air taxis are expected to take flight in Singapore in 2025, while Volocopter is looking to launch air taxi demonstration flights there as soon as the second half of this year. A handful of urban air mobility startup companies were deterred from establishing business in Singapore due to factors such as the unavailability of infrastructure. However, Volocopter’s announcement of plans to construct vertiports later this year could very well entice more and more companies to also build infrastructure in Singapore. In fact, despite the initial doubts, consulting firm Roland Berger has predicted that the nation will see growth in terms of passenger volumes to 3,000 within the next six years.
In May of 2019, Volocopter confirmed and elaborated upon initial statements regarding test flights slated to take place later this year. Singapore will be the first location of Volocopter’s flight test program and will result in the country’s first-ever air taxi vertiport. According to Volocopter, “public flight trials have been scheduled to take place in the second half of 2019.” The company has received consistent, strong support from the Ministry of Transport, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, and the Economic Development Board. Learn more about the plans regarding the “Volo-Port” here.

Rendering of how a future Volo-Port may look.
The Volocopter 2X is the company’s flagship eVTOL and features 18 propellors, all arranged in a circular symmetrical pattern. Volocopter has been successful thus far in garnering public support and has even hosted ride-along events in the vehicle for high-profile individuals. The current design includes a capacity for two passengers, a high level of redundancy, and a range of 27 kilometers. To read more about the technical specifications of the aircraft, visit our Hangar.
Volocopter has not only been developing its own vehicle and infrastucture, but has also been conducting analyses of the of urban air mobility as a whole. Just last month, Volocopter published a white paper that focuses on how to to overcome barriers for urban air mobility, covering issues like development, certification and service launch. Specific sections of the document discuss safety, noise emissions, range & speed, operating costs, capacity, and usability. Read the full white paper here.
Why it’s important: Through its latest agreements with Bell and Volocopter, Singapore may likely be the starting point for urban air mobility globally. As new transportation services are integrated and offered to the public in Singapore, the country will begin to set a model and standard that the rest of the world can follow.
Source // Business Times
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