Air-taxies have
long been a part of the public imagination. The convenience of travelling to workplaces
by air without the hassle of traffic jams and potholes has enticed many. Now, a
British aerospace company is on the verge of realising this very dream.
Vertical Aerospace, founded by Stephen Fitzpatrick, seeks to raise $394 million
in a blank-cheque New York listed company to have zero-emission mini aircrafts
flying in cities by the mid-2020s, according to a Reuters report.

Some of the world’s
most high-profile airlines and engineers believe that Vertical is truly onto
something and will soon quietly take four passengers through the skies for up
to 190 kilometres. Big investors participating in the enterprise include
American Airlines, aircraft lessor Avolon, engineers Honeywell and Rolls-Royce
as well as Microsoft’s M12 unit.

According to
Vertical founder Stephen Fitzpatrick, Vertical flights between London’s
Heathrow airport and the Canary Wharf financial district will take 50 minutes
and cost $68 per passenger.

The demand for
this innovation of convenience is such that more than 1,000 VA-X4 aircrafts
have been pre-ordered. The rising interest in zero-emission aircrafts comes at
a time when aviation companies are being put on the spot by engineers to come
up with technology that can decarbonize the sector and improve environmental
scores.

For Vertical, the
biggest challenge is to get certification for its aircraft, which according to
founder and CEO Fitzpatrick, the company is on the track to do by the end of
2024, funded by the new money from the merger.

The idea of
air-taxis came to Fitzpatrick nearly six years ago while he was sitting in 10
lanes of gridlocked traffic in Brazil’s Sao Paolo, he told Reuters. The VA-X4, the
flight that is set to change short trips maybe forever, will start test flights
early 2022. The flight will be using battery technology from the car industry and
electrical propulsion units and motors.