Australian startup Swoop Aero has completed three months of medical drone deliveries in the Democratic Republic of Congo, delivering more than 20,000 COVID-19 vaccine doses on long-range flights.
Three years after first investing in Zipline, Toyota has partnered with the U.S.-based drone delivery startup to develop a national-scale medical delivery network to improve access to health care in Japan.
UPS announced on April 7 that it plans to purchase up to 150 Beta Technologies’ Alia electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft to augment package deliveries in small and midsize markets.
Korea Aerospace Industries plans to enter the urban air mobility market as part of a new strategy to make the South Korean manufacturer the No. 1 aerospace company in Asia by 2030.
Agriculture is the latest market to get the electric vertical flight treatment, with crop protection startup Guardian Agriculture emerging from stealth with a $10.5 million seed funding round.
With more than 100 companies trying to break into the nascent urban air mobility market, it is perhaps inevitable that some of the vehicle designs look similar. But Boeing-backed Wisk sees enough similarities between one of its designs and new entrant Archer’s aircraft that it has filed a lawsuit.
The UK Ordnance Survey’s Astigan high-altitude pseudo-satellite project has been ended after the initiative was unable to secure a suitable strategic partner.
German regional air mobility startup Lilium is to go public in a deal expected to provide up to $830 million in funds to complete certification, begin production and launch commercial operation of its piloted seven-seat Lilium Jet air taxi in 2024.
Boeing-backed Wisk has added the aerospace giant’s Insitu Pacific unmanned aircraft division to the team working to demonstrate autonomous passenger transport in New Zealand.
Europe plans a large-scale demonstration of urban air mobility in 2022 focused on the deconfliction of multiple different types of users of low-altitude airspace.
Supersonic business jet developer Aerion has released the first image of a planned follow-on airliner concept designed for entry-into-service around the end of the decade which will cruise at higher Mach cruise numbers closer to the hypersonic region.
Skyborg could also be a cargo delivery aircraft. The program launched by Air Force Research Laboratory is mainly known for developing artificial intelligence for a new family of unmanned combat air vehicles, but the program also includes Volansi's cargo delivery system.
Japan’s Toshiba has invested $15 million in U.S. counter-drone defense startup Fortem Technologies, the companies forming a strategic business alliance to combine and market their systems globally.
A campaign to highlight enforcement of the UK’s laws on flights by small unmanned aircraft—and to emphasize the penalties that will be imposed when they are broken—has been launched this week by the nation’s airspace regulator, police force and government.
With the vision of operating 100,000 air taxis in cities globally by 2035, Volocopter has detailed its approach to scalable urban air mobility in a new white paper.
