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Last week the German aviation company Lilium unveiled the design of its five-seat vertical take-off and landing electric jet, which completed its maiden flight earlier this month.
Air taxis will become a reality and start offering services throughan app ina number ofcities overthe next six years, according tothe German company Lilium, according tomedia reports.
On Thursday, the Munich-based startup revealed its five-seater electric air taxi prototype.
“ Today we are taking another huge step towardsmaking urban air mobility a reality, ” Lilium co-founder and CEO Daniel Wiegand said atthe unveiling.
“ We dream ofa world where anyone can fly wherever they want, whenever they want .”
According toOliver Walker-Jones, Lilium head ofcommunications, there are plans tostart operations ina number ofcities by2025, butit’s yet tobe decided exactly where tobegin providing services.
The battery-poweredvertical take-off and landing jet is capable oftravelling 300 kilometres (186 miles) in60 minutes ona single charge.
The Lilium Jet, which concluded a maiden flight earlier this month, is part ofan app-based flying taxi service that the company hopes toget offthe ground.
Cities are planned tobe linked upvia a network oflanding pads, withcommuters able tobook trips througha smartphone app.
Although the startup has yet toreveal the possible cost ofsuch a service, it has claimed it will be “comparable inprice” toregular taxis.
The German startup will be facing competition asother companies outthere are also working onflying cars.
Uber (UBER) is partnering withNASA withthe goal oflaunching a flying taxi network by2023, while Boeing and Rolls Royce are also reportedly developing similar projects.
Lilium claims its aircraft is capable ofmaking “much longer journeys thanthe majority ofits competitors”.
The German company, founded in2015, boasts some high-profile investors, such asAtomico, the tech investment fund headed bySkype co-founder Niklas Zennström, and China’s tech giant Tencent, who have contributed around $100 mln tothe company inthe lofty hope offinally making flying cars an affordable reality.
(SPUTNIK)
