Urban flying taxi shows potential in emergency services use
Vertical take-off electric drones sound like something from a science-fiction movie, but these aircraft exist and are becoming more and more advanced.
German startup Volocopter made the world’s first manned, fully electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft in 2011 and, now, it has announced plans for a new version.
An emergency doctor was transported to treat a casualty in an exercise with Germany’s ADAC air rescue service
It’s an urban flying taxi that can carry two people over a range of 35 km at 110 kph between specially built Voloports. It resembles a small helicopter with 18 battery-powered rotors and can be summoned by users to their nearest hub using a smartphone app.
The aircraft has even shown potential for use by the emergency services, having taken part in a medical rescue mission in which an emergency doctor was transported to treat a casualty in an exercise with Germany’s ADAC air rescue service.
A new, autonomous freight version was also recently unveiled. It’s called the VoloDrone and it is capable of lifting a 200-kg payload 40 km. Volocopter said that, using 5G, the VoloDrone can operate beyond urban areas on missions like crop spraying, surveying and delivering bulky items.
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