Volocopter flies over Singapore’s Marina Bay

Volocopter has carried out a flight of the Volocopter 2X aircraft over Singapore’s Marina Bay, the company announced on 22 October.

A 2X model of the test series aircraft flew the two minute flight - approximately 1.5km - at an average cruising height of 40m.

The company is currently working to verify and validate the ability of Volocopter air taxis to fly over the area, with authorities including the Ministry of Transport, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), and the Economic Development Board supporting Volocopter in this testing phase.

Volocopter aims to bring commercial air taxi services to Singapore. Leading up to this flight, the aircraft had undergone intensive testing in Germany for several months. Following which, a rigorous flight test programme to verify the Volocopter 2X aircraft performance was conducted at Seletar Airport in accordance with CAAS.

Florian Reuter, CEO of Volocopter, said: ‘The flight today in Singapore was the most advanced Volocopter flight yet and the piloted flight was as stable as ever. At the same time, we are showcasing a prototype of our full-scale VoloPort infrastructure, allowing for a realistic demonstration of air taxi boarding and maintenance services. Never before have people been this close to experiencing what Urban Air Mobility in the city of tomorrow will feel like.’

Volocopter and its partner Skyports have built the first VoloPort prototype on the floating dock in Marina Bay. VoloPorts are the physical infrastructure required for air taxis and an important step to commencing operations in cities. They are designed to provide passengers with a seamless air taxi experience that is safe, secure, and integrated into existing infrastructure.