Now you can fly to your Office! At least for the people in Germany, it is a feasible scenario. German startup Volocopter is taking another key step with its electrically powered air taxi that flew for the first time over Stuttgart in Germany on Saturday. This was its first public test flight in a European city, according to the manufacturer.
The Volocopter electric air taxi is completely eco-friendly that looks more like a drone-electric helicopter. It is a small machine to fly on 18 rotors and with the help of this drone; the city sky can be circled. The company claims the drones are so quiet that you can’t hear them over city noise from 100 meters away. It has two seats. The pilot can sit on one seat and the passenger on one seat.
Last week Volocopter raised €50 million in a funding round led by Geely. The new funds will help in achieving Volocopter’s goal of launching a commercial air taxi service powered by its 18-rotor electric aircraft “within the next three years.”
The company is taking its next step with the hope that they can start commercial trips in the next 4-5 years. It is said to cost 100 million dollars to prepare the Volocopter electric helicopter aircraft. This aircraft can be booked from the mobile app.
Currently, the system comes with a top speed of 100 km/h (62 mph) and a range of roughly 27 km (16 miles), which is aimed at quick point-to-point transport in cities to bypass traffic. A plan is being prepared to make Volocopter an automated 4 seater air taxi.
