Taking to the skies

“We are bringing urban aviation to life.” Volocopter CEO Dirk Hoke wants to revolutionise mobility in cities. Traffic jams, exhaust fumes, congested streets – that’s the situation during rush hour in many big cities, and not only in Germany. “In large and smaller cities alike, our transport systems are reaching the limits of their capacity,” says Hoke. That’s what Volocopter wants to change with its alternative approach to mobility on the streets. “Our vision is to offer people an additional mobility option - without traffic jams and without emissions,” Hoke explains. The company has specialised in developing electric aircraft that take off and land vertically.

Stephan Wolf, Thomas Senkel and Alexander Zosel founded Volocopter in 2011. Their vision was an electric vehicle that would be safe, quiet and environmentally friendly. “The first prototype consisted of a yoga ball and some electric motors and rotors,” says Hoke. A short time later, the inventors developed their first real prototype and in 2016 received approval for the first manned test flight. In the meantime, the company has already conducted numerous successful flight tests and is about to have its aircraft certified for commercial use.

Volocopter has developed three models. The VoloCity has 18 rotor arms for stability and safety. The cabin has space for two passengers. This air taxi has already completed 2,000 test flights and since 2024 has been the first ever model to be deployed in urban aviation.

The VoloRegion is not yet in use but a model does already exist. “It will be capable of covering distances of up to 100 kilometres,” Hoke explains. The aircraft is to connect regions with cities. As yet, however, it has not proven possible to realise this solution: “Currently we do not have a reliable battery that could keep an aircraft of this size in the air for long enough.”

The company has also developed a fully electric supply drone. The VoloDrone can transport up to 200 kilograms of material over distances of 40 kilometres. It can be used where other means of transport reach their limitations, for example in disaster relief.

“Made in Germany is an important brand. Germany has an excellent reputation, especially in the field of engineering. That is also one of the reasons why, in a small town like Bruchsal, we were able to set up a company that now employs around 600 people,” explains Hoke. German innovations are in demand worldwide. This also benefits Volocopter. “We have more than 40 partner cities, but as we are still a small firm we are currently concentrating on just four,” explains Hoke. “We want to begin operating flights in Paris and Rome in 2024. In 2025 we plan to extend this to include the Expo in Osaka and also to offer the first flight routes in Saudi Arabia.” Volocopter will be operating five commercial routes in Paris from 2024. One will be in the city centre’s no-flight zone and will involve landing on a floating platform on the River Seine. This will be a first in the history of aviation - as well as a first test for the future of this form of mobility.

“Many people are sceptical initially when they hear about our idea. They wonder whether our cities will soon look like those in the classic film “The Fifth Element”. To persuade such people, we have to show them what responsible aviation looks like,” explains Hoke. Urban air taxis will initially fly only on very limited routes. They can only be integrated into urban air space if they are quiet, safe and green, says the CEO. “From 2024, we will have the chance in Paris to prove that our technology entails advantages. Our models are much quieter than helicopters, for example. I am confident that local residents living along our routes will respond positively to our air taxis.”

Hoke is aware that Volocopter won’t be an option for everyone. “Not everyone uses taxis today, either,” explains the CEO. Nonetheless, he believes that introducing urban air transport is a first important step towards decarbonising aviation and space travel. After all, it is not possible to predict when or indeed whether at all large commercial aircraft will be able to fly fully electrically. “With our VoloCity, we will already be taking the first step next year towards emission-free air travel.”