A certified flying electric taxi prototype is anticipated to be developed by a startup company based in Chennai by March 2025.
With its flying taxi, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras-founded ePlane Company seeks to reduce urban traffic.
In the upcoming months, the company also plans to commercialize its drones, which are capable of carrying two to six kilograms of payload.
The company is building an eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft, according to Satya Chakravarthy, founder and CEO. Initially, it will be a three- or four-seater aircraft with the ability to transform into an air ambulance.
“By March next year is when we expect to develop the first certifiable prototype. It will take another couple of years to get the certification from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA),” Chakravarthy told news agency PTI.
The business asserts that its goal is “to alleviate congestion in urban spaces by offering accessible, affordable and sustainable flying experiences to people around the world.”
A trip that would take a personal automobile sixty minutes can be completed in fourteen minutes by an ePlane, according to the company’s website.
Drones are being developed by the start-up and should go on sale in the upcoming months.