Airbus has announced ambitious plans to test prototype flying taxis before the end of the year, ahead of a wider rollout in 2021.
The aerospace company is currently working on Project Vahana, an autonomous, single-passenger taxi capable of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL). The company’s also developing a multi-passenger flying car, though it’s the smaller of the two that’s set for testing this year.
The company believes they’ll ease congestion on roads, and help members of the public save time and money.
"One hundred years ago, urban transport went underground, now we have the technological wherewithal to go above ground," said Airbus CEO Tom Enders at the DLD conference in Munich, according to Reuters. "We are in an experimentation phase, we take this development very seriously.
“With flying, you don’t need to pour billions into concrete bridges and roads."
Airbus envisages a future in which people are able to book flying taxis through an app, in a similar manner to Uber.
The future of transport is a particularly hot topic at the moment, with Nissan yesterday announcing that it will stage driverless car trials on public roads in London next month, the first of their kind to take place in Europe.
