Flying electric taxis in China
China, China, China……where a ‘one thousand year’ strategic plan can prevail, regulatory approval is swift, community consultation is nil, and return on investment is not essential. An example - China was an early commercial adopter of (German) magnetic levitation high speed rail over 20 years ago, and now intends to both dramatically expand its footprint and its speed.
I travelled on the Shanghai Maglev train at 420kmh just after it opened, and the fare was the equivalent of $6. They later had to reduce the speed as apparently the shockwave vacuum created by two passing trains was pulling the elevated tracks together. I remember it being a very sudden and dramatic sideways jolt. Safety ? Pffffttt. !!
One way or another, I have absolutely no doubt that China will make this e-VTOL ‘low altitude economy’ a reality.
Given the history of high speed rail in Australia, a low altitude economy in Australia probably won’t occur in my lifetime, but it’s still interesting to see where this stuff is headed.