An undated handout picture from Munich flying taxi startup Lilium shows its five-seater prototype in Munich, Germany, October, 2019. (Photo: REUTERS) |
The hub, due to start operations in 2025, would be Lilium’s second after a similar Vertiport planned in Duesseldorf, Germany. Startups are racing to develop, certify and manufacture electric aircraft in a bid to revolutionise short-range travel.
Five-year old Lilium - with 375 million USD in investor funding - is one of the best backed. Its five-seater Lilium Jet has undergone flight tests and, if approved for service, would offer travellers a way to skip traffic and quickly reach their destinations for around the cost of an Uber, said Chief Operating Officer Remo Gerber.
The fixed-wing aircraft, powered by 36 electric engines which point down for takeoff and tilt to the rear for horizontal flight, would be steered by a qualified pilot.
“It’s a hundred times safer than helicopters and pricing is five to 10 times cheaper,” Gerber told Reuters in an interview.