Skyportz Announces First Australian Air Taxi Hub to Service Brisbane Olympics

by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M. Crosby

Today at the Air Taxi World Congress in London, Skyportz announced that their first Australian infrastructure for air taxis will be built at the Australian Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence in Moreton Bay, Brisbane, Australia in 2023.

“Skyportz has been accumulating sites in Australia since 2018 and we now have over 400 property partners ready to build out a Skyportz network”’ said Skyportz CEO Clem Newton-Brown.

Skyportz is working alongside both Australian Federal and State governments in order to assist in the development of the standards, regulations and zones which will enable the Skyportz “mini airports” in new locations in and around cities and regional centres.

“There is strong political support to develop a new era in clean, green electric aviation in Australia, however we are waiting on Federal standards and new State regulations to be developed before we can proceed to building a network,” continued Newton-Brown. “For this reason we are focusing initially on existing aviation infrastructure and places where it is possible to get a permit for a helipad which can transition into a future Skyportz. The AACME site was already proposing a helipad so this partnership has enabled us to bring forward our plans.”

The Skyportz brand is protected in all emerging markets globally. There are currently more than 300 electric air taxi startups around the world, and the industry has seen upwards of $8 billion invested in the aircraft. Three of the industry’s frontrunners, Lilium, Joby and Archer, were listed on the New York Stock exchange in the previous month.

“Without a Skyportz landing site network these aircraft are not going to be able to realise their full potential”, said Newton-Brown. “Our networks around the world will be available for all air taxi entrants but our first partner is the very exciting Electra Aero aircraft from the USA.”

The Australian Advanced Manufacturing Centre of Excellence (AAMCE) is set to establish a world first facility just north of Brisbane’s CBD, with a focus on the fully integrated commercialisation of Intellectual Property (IP) developed in Australia, and manufactured in Australia for global export. The AAMCE is looking to swiftly establish sovereign capabilities across the country’s most crucial sectors including Defence, Space and Medical.

“We are particularly excited to be designing the first Australian Skyportz here in Brisbane as part of the AAMCE. To us it makes perfect sense that the most advanced manufacturing centre in Australia should include the most advanced transport system possible in its design. Brisbane is busily preparing for the Olympic Games in 2032 which will provide a great opportunity for the city to embrace a new form of transportation and showcase it to the world”, said Ty Hermans, Director of AAMCE.

“The AAMCE site is perfectly suited to become a major transport hub and support the future of air mobility. We are in the heart of the Moreton Bay region, just metres from a major metro linked train station, a leading Australian University, and the most advanced manufacturing and commercialisation centre in the country that is attracting some of the worlds greatest companies…This will put Australia on the map and we are very proud to be a partner of Skyportz in establishing this capability,” Hermans continued. “We expect that by 2032 we should have a well established electric air taxi service in Brisbane if we get the support of all levels of Government.”

Read more about publicly traded urban air mobility companies, NASA’s urban air mobility challenge, flying cars, drone taxis, aerial sightseeing, and the first working air taxi service.

Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer