We’ve taken a giant step closer to a Jetsons-like future with the opening of Urban-Air Port’s Air-One, touted as the world’s first flying-taxi hub. Opened last week in Coventry, England, the station is being positioned as a pioneer for more than 200 electric vertical takeoff and landing ports that are planned to be built around the globe. Zero-emission drones will ferry passengers and transport cargo as part of what the company calls “the coming green air transportation revolution.”
Don’t grab your suitcase just yet, though. Air-One is currently more of a model than a working vertiport. It’s intended to demonstrate the feasibility of a global network of hubs that could be constructed on land, placed on water, or even sit atop a skyscraper.
That versatility means that the vertiports could reach areas current air travel cannot, and they would also have a smaller environmental footprint with less congestion and air pollution. Vertiports would be positioned not just for passenger travel and package delivery, but also for emergency management and security and defense operations.