The prototype of the first airworthy "flying taxi", the eVTOL - electric vertical take-off and landing jet - from the manufacturer Lilium, shown in 2018. (picture alliance/Daniel Karmann/dpa/archive)
The five-seater electric air taxi Lilium Jet has completed its maiden flight near the German city of Munich. Lilium company founder Daniel Wiegand told dpa that the one-and-a-half tonne prototype took off vertically and hovered in place.
The next step will be to "fly manoeuvres," Wiegand said. Starting in 2025, the air taxis are meant to offer daily commercial flights in at least two cities.
The electric aircraft is quiet and will be able to fly for one hour at a speed of 300 kilometres per hour, according to Wiegand. His company does not intend to sell the air taxis, but operate them itself, at prices comparable with a regular taxi.
Investors have provided Lilium with more than 100 million dollars. The Munich-based company, which employs around 300 people, now plans to "create a few hundred more jobs and establish four factories in Germany, probably in Bavaria."
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