Eve’s eVTOL Could Be Coming To India

The prospects of India having flying taxis in the next few years got a major push a few days ago when Embraer-backed Eve Air Mobility announced a strategic partnership for urban air mobility in the country. The deal could see 200 electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles criss-cross the skies of Indian cities in the next five years.

Partnership announced

On September 27th, Eve Air Mobility announced a strategic partnership with FlyBlade India (BLADE India) – a joint venture between New York-based urban air mobility platform Blade Air Mobility and New Delhi-based investment firm Hunch Ventures – which includes a non-binding order of up to 200 eVTOLs.

As one of India’s leading short-haul air mobility services providers, BLADE India will act as Eve’s on-ground knowledge partner to create the Urban Air Mobility (UAM) ecosystem. The data collected through BLADE India’s customer experience and operations will be used to further develop Eve’s eVTOL, service and support solutions, and its UATM software. BLADE India will initially underwrite 50,000 hours of flight time per year using Eve’s eVTOL in the country.

Amit Dutta, managing director, BLADE India, commented,

“India’s traffic congestion woes are only expected to get worse. This partnership allows us to leverage Eve’s deep expertise in not just EVA design but also in the infrastructure required to support UAM.”

Larger plan

André Stein, co-CEO of Eve, told The Times of India (TOI) that the country is “most relevant for UAM” and that the deliveries of the eVTOLs will be within weeks or months of when they enter into service in 2026. He further added,

“Initially our eVTOL will be piloted; with a seating capacity for four passengers and cargo space – a must for airport service. They will weigh about 2.5-3 tonnes (batteries will account for a quarter of this weight); have a maximum take-off weight equivalent to a chopper and have a flying range of 100 km.”

In the second stage – after taking learning experiences from the piloted flights – EAM plans to launch six-seater automated air taxis that will run without a pilot, by which time it is hoped that passengers will be comfortable with such flights.

eVTOLs are expected to arrive in India by 2026. Photo: Eve Air Mobility

The report also quotes Dutta as saying,

“We are very proud to bring this service to India in 2026 or shortly thereafter and our groundwork for creating the infrastructure will begin immediately.”

eVTOL’s future in India

The Indian government also seems to have realized the potential in the eVTOL aircraft market. Earlier this year, the country’s aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that several eVTOL companies could be persuaded to set up manufacturing plants in India.

India is keen to be a part of the future eVTOL industry. Photo: Beta Technologies

Scindia added that several eVTOL players from Canada and the US are interested in setting up production centers in India. One of them is Vermont-based Beta Technologies, which also has a partnership with the BLADE group.

Indeed, with significant industry players investing in future eVTOL vehicles, India is likely to participate significantly in the sector.

What future do you feel eVTOLs have in India? Please leave a comment below.

Source: The Times of India