MUFG Bank and other major Japanese companies from a range of industries have joined forces to study how to commercially deploy air taxis in western Japan, including sustainable business models, necessary infrastructure and ways to create demand through tourism.
Japanese startup SkyDrive Inc’s compact aircraft, which can take off and land vertically without a runway, will be used in the service targeting the Kansai region, which includes Osaka and Kyoto prefectures. Companies joining the study may establish a jointly owned company to operate the service planned for launch in 2028.
In a road map updated in March, the Japanese government said it expects commercial services using such next-generation air mobility vehicles to start between 2027 and 2028.
SkyDrive, based in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture in central Japan, conducted more than a dozen demonstration flights at last year’s World Exposition in Osaka, using its battery-powered multirotor aircraft that can carry a pilot and up to two passengers. — Kyodo
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