Eve, the Brazillian electric aircraft manufacturer, has announced its highly anticipated ‘flying car’ will be integrated into air taxi company, Blade’s, European route network – potentially making flying cars a reality sooner than first thought.
According to Eve and Blade, the company’s partnership is expanding to integrate the long-awaited vehicle into its regular routes, beginning in France.
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Blade currently uses traditional helicopters for its commercial operations.
Eve’s electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle (eVTOL), which has been dubbed one of the world’s first flying cars, is due to launch its first commercial operations in 2026.
The Brazilian electric plane maker said it has already received a backlog of just under 3,000 pre-orders for the vehicle, which has been backed by Rolls Royce and United Airlines.
Andre Stein, Eve CEO, said the partnership with Blade would help to make travel more accessible and lead towards a cleaner environment.
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By GlobalDataThe European expansion follows the two companies recently announcing a similar partnership in India and the US.
The deal included deploying up to 200 electric aircraft in India, as well as Eve providing up to 60 vehicles a year in the US.
Blade CEO, Rob Wiesenthal, said: “Extending our partnership with Eve underscores Blade’s commitment to leading the transition from conventional to electric vertical aircraft.”
Eve recently announced that its eVTOL had completed a successful wind tunnel test, an obstacle that regulators see as an important part of flying safety certification.
Experts have remained sceptical about eVTOL’s future, despite the positive benefits of companies like Eve’s environmentally conscious vision.
“The concept of using electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles as regional air taxis is an interesting possibility that could be realized in the near term,” Lee Sykes, commercial director at Drive System Design UK, previously told Verdict.
“However, the current economics of using them for such short journeys may be a barrier,” he added.
