PR87125

SINGAPORE and BRUCHSAL, Germany, Dec. 9, 2020 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

Volocopter, the pioneer in Urban Air Mobility (UAM), announced its commitment

today to launch air taxi services in Singapore after two years of close

collaboration with the city. Working together with the Economic Development

Board of Singapore (EDB) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS),

Volocopter plans to make air taxi services a reality in the Southeast Asian

city-state within the next three years. This puts Singapore in pole position to

launch Urban Air Mobility in Asia.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1361664/EDB_Announcement_VoloCity_Singapore.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1361665/volocopter_Logo.jpg

In October 2019, Volocopter completed the historic air taxi demonstration

flight (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZH7DSFRCqDQ ) in the heart of Singapore

over the Marina Bay area, giving observers the unique opportunity to have a

sense of what UAM will look like. Before launching the services in Singapore,

Volocopter will obtain the necessary regulatory approvals, including those from

CAAS and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency. To achieve this, Volocopter

will be conducting comprehensive tests, flight trials, evaluations, and certification

before approval to commence commercial air taxi operations can be granted.

"Singapore is renowned for its leading role in adapting and living new

technologies. Our successful cooperation with EDB, MOT, and CAAS on our

previous flight has shown that there is no better place in Asia to launch our

electric air taxi services than in Singapore," says Florian Reuter, CEO of

Volocopter. "The city's research institutes conducting R&D play an integral

part in this. Topics like route validation for autonomous operations, material

science, and research regarding battery technology are very important for our

long-term business success."

The first route is expected to be a touristic route over the southern waters,

offering breath-taking views of the Marina Bay skyline. Follow-on connections

may include cross-border flights, which may enhance regional connectivity and

offer a significantly improved travel experience to Singapore's closest

economic centers.  

"Urban Air Mobility is an emerging area within the broader mobility sector,

which we have identified as a growth industry for Singapore," said Mr. Tan Kong

Hwee, Executive Vice President, EDB. "Singapore is an important regional

testbed for autonomous cars, electric vehicles, and Urban Air Mobility,

including the successful test flight by Volocopter in 2019. We are glad that

Volocopter has chosen Singapore to anchor its commercial and R&D activities.

This will help build new capabilities for our mobility ecosystem and create

many exciting opportunities for Singapore."

"In this new area of Urban Air Mobility, we look forward to continue working

with Volocopter. This gives us the opportunity to co-create regulations and

technologies with the industry, facilitating innovation to enable a future mode

of transportation for Singapore," said Mr. Tan Kah Han, Senior Director

(Unmanned Systems Group) of CAAS.  

Volocopter air taxis are emission-free aircraft that take-off and land

vertically. They are designed as an addition to urban mobility and will fly up

to two passengers directly and quietly to their destination and offer a whole

new dimension to the quality of life in cities.

About

Volocopter GmbH is building the world's first sustainable and scalable UAM

business to bring affordable air taxi services to megacities worldwide.

Volocopter leads and cooperates with partners to build the ecosystem necessary

to 'Bring Urban Air Mobility to Life'. Founded in 2011, Volocopter has 200

employees and raised a total of 122 million euro in equity. www.volocopter.com

SOURCE:  Volocopter GmbH