Air New Zealand Is Investing In A New Type of Travel

Air New Zealand is officially working on developing a flying taxi. The airline’s new electric taxi will presumably be capable of transporting groups of people without the need to hop on a flight or take up room on the road if and when it reaches the market. What’s more, it will be completely autonomous. Air New Zealand has partnered with a startup company called Zephyr Airworks to turn electric travel into the next big thing. Zephyr Airworks has already been working on an autonomous electric taxi called the Cora for the better part of a decade.

There is no telling just how likely the reality of electric flying taxis really is for the people of New Zealand. The fact that an established airline like Air New Zealand is investing in the idea is definitely a promising sign. However, cost-related constraints and design setbacks are always possible when it comes to new ideas like this one.

No timeline has been revealed regarding when the public can expect to see some progress made in the realm of this new electric taxi. Air New Zealand has yet to release any specific details regarding its development plans or provide any sort of deadline for when a product will be released.

New Zealand seems to be eager to be at the forefront of the electric revolution that could hit the transportation world within the next decade. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern recently entered into an agreement with Zephyr to test the autonomous Cora aircraft that is under development. The new Cora aircraft is unique because it features self-piloting software and it has the ability to launch vertically. The agreement regarding Cora is part of an official process for certification that is being developed by the government of New Zealand.

[Image: Flickr]