US Agency Issues Final Rules for Flying Air Taxis
2024-10-27
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1The U.S. government has issued final rules for operating air taxis.
2It has also set training and approval requirements for pilots.
3The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the new rules.
4They were announced October 22.
5The FAA explains that air taxis belong to a kind of aircraft known as Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) flyers.
6These aircraft are generally highly automated and electrically powered.
7They also have vertical take-off and landing abilities, the agency said.
8Air taxis are part of the AAM group, or category.
9But they are also considered "power-lift" vehicles.
10The aircraft have elements of both airplanes and helicopters, the FAA said.
11Other power-lift vehicles are designed to transport goods rather than people.
12These aircraft take off and land vertically but can fly like fixed-wing planes.
13Many companies have designed and built such models and are working to get them to market.
14But the efforts have been delayed because of a lack of final requirements, or regulations, governing their use.
15FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said powered-lift aircraft represent "the first new category of aircraft in nearly 80 years."
16He added that the new rules are meant to open the door to supporting widespread AAM operations in the U.S. in the future.
17Whitaker said the new rules aim to make sure "this new generation of aircraft maintain the high level of safety that defines modern aviation."
18The goal is to establish requirements to ensure that AAMs "are able to safely operate in our National Airspace System alongside existing aircraft."
19The FAA has said air taxi operations will begin slowly.
20In the beginning, air taxis will use existing travel paths and landing structures currently used by helicopters.
21The new rules will permit pilots to train with a single set of flight controls.
22Past FAA rules required two flight controls - one for the student and one for the flight instructor.
23Air taxi supporters call the aircraft a cleaner choice compared to passenger airplanes, which burn jet fuel.
24Supporters have called for widespread expansion of the flyers beginning as early as 2025.
25But experts say current technology limitations make it likely air taxis will only be able to operate at first in large cities.
26One company developing AAMs is California-based Joby Aviation.
27It praised the new FAA rules.
28Company chief JoeBen Bevirt said the rules "will ensure the U.S. continues to play a global leadership role in the development and adoption of clean flight."
29Some airline companies have said they see air taxis as a way to transport passengers to airports.
30In 2022, Delta Air Lines said it would invest $60 million in Joby.
31And this month, Toyota announced a $500 million investment in the company.
32United Airlines is backing another California-based company, Archer Aviation.
33The Associated Press reports that United has ordered 200 aircraft, which Archer said could be worth up to $1 billion.
34Former acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen is currently Archer's chief safety officer.
35He told the Reuters news agency that the new FAA rules represent a big step forward for the future deployment of flying air taxis.
36"Now we've got a roadmap," Nolen said.
37I'm Bryan Lynn.
1The U.S. government has issued final rules for operating air taxis. It has also set training and approval requirements for pilots. 2The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the new rules. They were announced October 22. 3The FAA explains that air taxis belong to a kind of aircraft known as Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) flyers. These aircraft are generally highly automated and electrically powered. They also have vertical take-off and landing abilities, the agency said. 4Air taxis are part of the AAM group, or category. But they are also considered "power-lift" vehicles. The aircraft have elements of both airplanes and helicopters, the FAA said. Other power-lift vehicles are designed to transport goods rather than people. 5These aircraft take off and land vertically but can fly like fixed-wing planes. Many companies have designed and built such models and are working to get them to market. But the efforts have been delayed because of a lack of final requirements, or regulations, governing their use. 6FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said powered-lift aircraft represent "the first new category of aircraft in nearly 80 years." He added that the new rules are meant to open the door to supporting widespread AAM operations in the U.S. in the future. 7Whitaker said the new rules aim to make sure "this new generation of aircraft maintain the high level of safety that defines modern aviation." The goal is to establish requirements to ensure that AAMs "are able to safely operate in our National Airspace System alongside existing aircraft." 8The FAA has said air taxi operations will begin slowly. In the beginning, air taxis will use existing travel paths and landing structures currently used by helicopters. The new rules will permit pilots to train with a single set of flight controls. Past FAA rules required two flight controls - one for the student and one for the flight instructor. 9Air taxi supporters call the aircraft a cleaner choice compared to passenger airplanes, which burn jet fuel. Supporters have called for widespread expansion of the flyers beginning as early as 2025. But experts say current technology limitations make it likely air taxis will only be able to operate at first in large cities. 10One company developing AAMs is California-based Joby Aviation. It praised the new FAA rules. Company chief JoeBen Bevirt said the rules "will ensure the U.S. continues to play a global leadership role in the development and adoption of clean flight." 11Some airline companies have said they see air taxis as a way to transport passengers to airports. In 2022, Delta Air Lines said it would invest $60 million in Joby. And this month, Toyota announced a $500 million investment in the company. United Airlines is backing another California-based company, Archer Aviation. The Associated Press reports that United has ordered 200 aircraft, which Archer said could be worth up to $1 billion. 12Former acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen is currently Archer's chief safety officer. He told the Reuters news agency that the new FAA rules represent a big step forward for the future deployment of flying air taxis. 13"Now we've got a roadmap," Nolen said. 14I'm Bryan Lynn. 15The Associated Press, Reuters and the Federal Aviation Administration reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the reports for VOA Learning English. 16_____________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18automated - adj. when something is controlled by machines rather than people 19vertical - adj. pointing straight up from a surface 20open the door - idiom. to make something easier or more likely to happen 21maintain - v. to make something continue in the same way 22instructor - n. a person who trains others how to do something 23adopt - v. to accept or start something new