New footage of flying air taxis coming to New Zealand – Stuff

New footage of flying taxis that will be active in New Zealand within "five to 10 years" has been released.

Wisk Aero is creating pilotless flying taxis that "rise like a helicopter and fly like a plane". The aircraft has 12 independent electric rotors, redundant systems, and a parachute if anything goes seriously wrong.

Testing took place in Canterbury over recent years, with Stuff Travel witnessing a test flight at Tekapo Airport in 2019. The company has partnered with the New Zealand Government to progress its trials, and with Air New Zealand which may eventually introduce them to its fleet.

Wisk Aero/Supplied

The flying taxis have been tested in New Zealand.

More than 1500 test flights have so far taken place both in New Zealand and at its base in the United States.

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Fresh footage has been released of Wisk's progress, revealing the aircraft flying faster and higher.

The company also recently announced a "6th generation" aircraft which has four seats, with the company saying "the day in which you'll be able to skip traffic by flying over it in an air taxi is approaching, and we want the world to be ready.

Wisk Aero/Supplied

Wisk has recently revealed a four-seat version of its aircraft.

Flight testing in New Zealand has wrapped up for now, and the focus here has moved to an "Airspace Integration Trial Programme.

"We have been developing and testing procedures that will allow autonomous aircraft to fly in controlled airspace," explains Chris Brown, Wisk's Communications Lead.

Air New Zealand's CEO Greg Foran was recently in California checking out the new four-seater aircraft.

However, the airline is staying tight-lipped about what it wants to do with the flying taxis.

Asked about its ambitions for the electric taxis, Foran gave little away.

"Air New Zealand has had a Memorandum of Understanding with Wisk since 2018, and we continue to work together to find sustainable aviation solutions.

Wisk Aero/Supplied

Wisk says passengers can expect to be flying in the air taxis within five to ten years.

"Wisk is making great progress with their autonomous electric 4-seater aircraft, and we look forward to staying close to them as their technology advances," Foran said.

Wisk has huge ambitions for its aircraft, saying that within five years of certification, it expects 14 million annual flights across 20 cities, with approximately 40 million people using its service.

The company confirmed that at least one New Zealand city is among the first 20 but wont go into further detail at this stage.

Wisk has an impressive list of partners, including Nasa and Boeing - which recently announced it was investing NZ$690 million (US$450m) in the company.

The company confirmed Wisk aircraft will be on display at upcoming events in New Zealand.

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New footage of flying air taxis coming to New Zealand - Stuff