The prospect of tourists visiting attractions in Turkey travelling by air taxi has been raised with a deal for 50 electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
Gozen Holding, one of Turkey’s leading aviation conglomerates and owner of Freebird Airlines, has agreed to purchase or lease the VX4 craft from international aircraft leasing company Avolon.
Investment and innovation affiliate Avolon-e has formed a strategic partnership with Gozen Holding to commercialise zero-emissions eVTOL travel and develop an urban air mobility (UAM) platform in Turkey.
The two businesses will collaborate in a working group to identify and target local partners, research potential market opportunities, as well as infrastructure and certification requirements for UAM.
Avolon said: “Istanbul’s ancient and modern city and surrounding attractions such as Cappadocia, Troy, Mount Ida, Antalya, Izmir, Çeşme, Bodrum, Marmaris and Fethiye present compelling eVTOL use cases that the working group will explore.
“These attractions make the country one of the most sought-after tourist and business destinations in the world.”
The company described Istanbul as offering “one of the most unique opportunities worldwide” for eVTOLs due to its distant airports, traffic congestion and vast waterway networks.
With more than 50 million people using ferries or city boats in Istanbul every year, eVTOLs would offer a faster, quieter and more sustainable form of travel, helping reduce travellers’ environmental footprint.
Avolon has now placed its entire 500 VX4 eVTOL aircraft orderbook and has been oversubscribed by 50 options. Virgin Atlantic, American Airlines and Air Asia are among backers of the initiative.
Chief executive Domhnal Slattery said: “Today marks an important milestone on our eVTOL journey, as we have now fully placed our VX4 orderbook with some of the leading international airlines and aviation companies all over the world.
“The opportunities to deploy the VX4 are enormous and, as is evident with our placement progress to date, zero emissions eVTOL air travel will reshape the short-haul travel market.
“Our partnership with Gözen Holding will create a pioneer in UAM in Turkey, bringing sustainable air travel to the region.”
Gozen Holding chief executive Mekin Gozen added: “As an integral part of the Turkish aviation industry, we feel it is incumbent upon us to be at the forefront of the sustainability movement and that is why we identified Avolon, and Vertical’s VX4, as the zero-emissions eVTOL aircraft that will revolutionise air travel.
“With over 15 million people living in Istanbul, the city is consistently faced with congestion which hinders both the cities’ development and attractiveness as a tourist and business location.
“We strongly believe that the deployment of the VX4 will dramatically reshape Istanbul and the rest of Turkey.”