Air New Zealand is getting into a different form of people moving with an agreement to work with Zephyr Airworks to bring the world’s first autonomous electric air taxi service to market in New Zealand.
Zephyr, the New Zealand arm of the California company behind the self-piloted air taxi, has already trialed an experimental prototype of its Cora vehicle in Canterbury and is working with the nation's regulatory agencies, universities and business.
Parent company Kitty Hawk is funded by Google co-founder Larry Page and has been working on the prototype for more than eight years.
Cora takes off vertically like a helicopter but can transition to flying like a plane. It is powered by 12 electric fans that together produce 522,000 watts, or 700 horsepower, and can travel up to 110 miles per hour (177kmh).
Zephyr aspires to have 20 aircraft operating in New Zealand by 2019 and wants to transform spaces such as rooftops and parking lots into “vertiports” for take-off and landing.
READ: Air New Zealand looks to hit print on metal aircraft parts.
Air New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon said the airline was committed to embracing new technologies that make life easier, as well as understanding the potential of cleaner energy solutions for travel.
Luxon sees the announcement as the start of a long-term relationship and said it had been impressed with Zephyr Airworks’ innovative and considered approach.
“Zephyr Airworks is leading the way in re-defining personal mobility to make it easier for all of us to get around. Zephyr Airworks’ innovative technology and commitment to New Zealand make them an ideal partner for advancing the future of travel in New Zealand,’’ he said.
“Both companies see the potential for our airspace to free people from the constraints of traffic and its associated social, economic and environmental impacts.
“Through the development of their autonomous electric air taxi Cora, the possibility of getting from A to B quickly and safely, and also relieving the impact of polluting emissions, is very real indeed.”
A tail view of during flight trails. Image Zephyr
The air taxi concept still faces steep regulatory hurdles as well the issues of public acceptance.
However, research into electric aircraft is gaining momentum and aircraft manufacturers, ride-sharing company Uber and even car-makers looking closely at the technology,
Airbus, which is developing its own air taxi concept called Vahana, told a recent aviation sustainability summit that it expected 1000-mile, 100-seater aircraft would be in commercial production by the late 2030s.
Zephyr Airworks chief executive Fred Reid said Air New Zealand’s international profile, culture of innovation, high standards and vision for sustainability made it a perfect partner.
“One day, everyday people across the globe will be able to use Cora to bring flight into their lives,’’ he said. “While we are not at that point yet, we are showing people what is possible. That is why we are excited to be drawing on Air New Zealand’s wealth of operational expertise in the New Zealand market.”
Separately, AirNZ said it would lift plastic waste reduction to more than 24 million items a year by substituting a further 14 single-use plastic products over the next 12 months.
The airline has already removed single-use plastic straws, stir sticks, eye mask wrappers and plastic toothbrushes from lounges and on board aircraft.
Over a 12 month period, this will see the airline reduce its plastic footprint by 260,000 plastic toothbrushes, 3,000 straws, 7.1 million stirrers and 260,000 eye mask wrappers.
These changes are part of a wider program aimed at reducing the airline’s use of plastic, supported by the Ministry for the Environment.
