FAA Releases Interim Vertiport Guidelines for eVTOL Aircraft
September 28, 2022
By Tom Atwood
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has released an engineering brief (#105) that provides initial guidelines for advanced electric-powered air mobility (AAM) aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) capabilities.
As noted by the FAA, the guidelines “serve as the initial step to provide key information for airport owners, operators and infrastructure developers to begin development of facilities that will support operations of AAM aircraft that are electrically powered and take-off and land vertically.” In addition, the FAA said the Engineering Brief “provides interim guidance for the design of vertiports for aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) capabilities. Note that this interim guidance will be subject to update as data, analysis, and VTOL aircraft and operations develop.”
The mounting pace of activity in the vertical mobility space is underscored by the Urban AIr Mobility Challenge. Sponsored by the Vertical Lift Consortium (VLC), in partnership with TechConnect and Advanced Technology International (ATI), the challenge previously announced 19 finalists for the event, with those chosen receiving membership to the VLC and the chance to win $50,000 in non-dilutive funds through a competition to be held at the Defense TechConnect Innovation Summit in Washington, D.C.
In addition, several airports across the country have been developing plans for eVTOL aircraft. For example, West Virginia’s Yeager Airport is installing multiple eVTOL chargers and developing an eVTOL pilot certification program.
Stay tuned for more news from Robotics-World on the developing vertical mobility arena. Concept images courtesy of the FAA.
