Skyports Infrastructure and Wisk Aero are expanding their partnership to identify an Entry-into-Service (EIS) network for Wisk’s autonomous Generation 6 aircraft in the South East Queensland (SEQ) region of Australia.
“The latest agreement builds on an existing partnership between Wisk and Skyports announced in 2022, which marked the first collaboration between a vertiport developer-operator and an autonomous eVTOL developer,” said the two companies. “The new partnership furthers Wisk’s work with the Council of Mayors (SEQ), which began in 2022 to work together to introduce safe, sustainable, and scalable, autonomous air taxi service to South East Queensland. As part of the new agreement, Wisk and Skyports will collaborate to determine locations for a viable vertiport network for SEQ.
“SEQ is home to 4 million people and over the next 20 years the region will be home to 6 million people. The region is undergoing rapid and extensive development ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Wisk and Skyports’ partnership will identify opportunities for the safe development and scale-up of AAM services to complement other transport investments, support tourism, and connect communities across the region.
Wisk and Skyports will undertake a complex analysis of regional travel patterns, identify candidate vertiport sites, conduct feasibility studies, and engage with prospective landlords and nearby communities, say the companies. This last step is vital to the successful introduction of Wisk’s urban air taxi service. The ultimate goal of this project is the development of a thorough business case to support the development of the necessary vertiport infrastructure.
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