German urban air mobility company Volocopter has received FAA permission to pursue certification of its autonomous, electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) passenger drone design for flights in the USA.
- January 15, 2021, 11:39 AM
Germany s Volocopter plans to operate its two-seat VoloCity aircraft in air taxi services for several major U.S. cities. (Photo: Volocopter)
Volocopter this week went public with its plans to introduce air taxi operations with its eVTOL aircraft into the U.S. market. In a January 15 announcement, the German startup said that the FAA has accepted its application to concurrently validate the EASA type certification it expects secure in the next two or three years.
The company said that its application was accepted by the FAA on December 22. According to a spokeswoman, the U.S. agency has indicated a willingness to consider an alternative basis for certification to the new Special Condition VTOL (SC-VTOL) certification process now being finalized by EASA. This would be the new 14 CFR 21.17 (b) special class, which is intended for aircraft that don’t fit the amended versions of existing Part 23 rules for eVTOL designs with conventional takeoff capabil