As part of Airbus best-known project - Vahana - the company's flying taxi called the Alpha Two took to the skies last January for the first time passing its initial flight test. Now, get ready for the ride as a glimpse of what the Alpha Two would look like comes out. Airbus’ Vahana Team have shared photos of Airbus flying taxi through their official blog.
The first photo of the Alpha Two Airbus Air Taxi is seen to have space only for one person and looks a lot like something one can find in a futuristic arcade. There is no pilot since it works by remote control so the passengers will get an unobstructed view of the skies. There's a high-definition screen that will allow the user to see the route.
In another photo, the Alpha Two is shown with its cabin hatch open as if someone is set to enter it and fly with it, but it’s not clear yet how the passenger can get into the aircraft as there are no stairs, platform or even steps seen that can help passengers go up into the cockpit.
Airbus also works with another model, the CityAirbus, which has a capacity for four passengers and is also autonomous. It travels at a speed of 120 kilometers per hour and has an autonomy, at the moment, of 15 minutes of flight. This vehicle, however, is designed to fly on fixed routes between critical transit centers such as the city center and an airport. Ground tests were started in 2018, and the commercial introduction is scheduled for 2023.
The congestion of the city center is causing different companies such as Uber or Airbus, to focus a large part of their efforts on the design of flying taxis. Although it is difficult to predict when it will be mass produced and used, it will arrive "sooner or later, as evident with the photos of the Alpha Two.
Airbus plan is for their Alpha Two flying taxi to be used around the world in a relatively short time. The company wants to start a test service in Paris, more as an advertising initiative. Airbus also plans to use the flying taxis to deliver organs from one hospital to another to avoid traffic and cutoff time.
Airbus and other company like Uber looking to the future of flying taxis would still need local authorities to adopt regulations and create an intermediate flight space to start up their equipment and service. For now, we are excited on how the future of flying taxis is looking.
