Hyundai's electric air taxi can take off as early as 2028 in US

S'pore's CAAS working with Asia regulators on toolkits for air taxi, drone commercial ops

- Toh Yong Chuan

IRVINE, California — A commercial air taxi service backed by South Korean car giant Hyundai can start as early as 2028.

Its initial markets could include the US, where an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) air taxi prototype is being developed; and South Korea, where Hyundai is headquartered.

However, the expansion of its air taxi services to other countries, including Singapore, will depend on the regulators of the various countries.

The latest timeline for the Hyundai electric air taxi was disclosed at a media briefing on Nov 6 in Irvine, California, at the engineering headquarters of Supernal, the Hyundai subsidiary developing the aircraft.

Supernal in January unveiled its S-A2 electric flying taxi, which is a hybrid between a helicopter and light aircraft.

The company has started talking to operators interested in the aircraft and prototype flight testing is scheduled for 2026. This will be followed by certification and delivery of the first units in 2028, Supernal senior director of strategy and commercialisation David Rottblatt said at the briefing.

"It is an ambitious timeline," he said, but added that it can be achieved with discipline and funding from Hyundai.

Supernal's aircraft has a pilot and seats for four passengers.

It has a range of about 100km and it can cruise at 190kmh at an altitude of 457m, according to official data on Supernal's website. It has eight tilting rotors powered by 16 battery packs.