Uber Is On Board With Dubai’s Vision For Flying Taxis And Want To Launch Them In 2020

Uber has announced plans to have flying taxis in Dubai, and Dallas by 2020. 

Uber’s chief product officer, Jeff Holden announced the news at a press conference in Dallas, Texas, explaining  that the plan is to test ‘Uber Elevate’ in Dubai in 2020, and hopefully have the system rolled out in 2023. 

Dubai is set to host flying taxis in July this year, according to officials

The RTA is working to have the autonomous aerial vehicles flying the Dubai skies, and has now partnered with Uber to operate some of the vehicles. 

Due to the nature and cost of the aerial vehicles, Holden said they will need to operate at capacity – of four people – to make sure the vehicles are efficient and cost effective. It’s expected Dubai will host passenger pods, where travellers meet to share the four-person ride. 

Holden said Dubai is ideal for rolling out such a mission 

“It’s a monarchy, so they have the ability to move very quickly with things that they get behind strategically. The certification of machinery and the approach to getting the aircraft through could be a much faster path [than in the U.S.].”

Jeff Holden, Uber’s chief product officer

Meanwhile Uber released a statement

“The goal of these partnerships is to develop a new on-demand VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) network to enable customers in the future to push a button and get a high-speed flight in and around cities. 

“What started as a simple question ‘why can’t I push a button and get a ride?’ has turned, for Uber, into a passionate pursuit of the pinnacle of urban mobility – the reduction of congestion and pollution from transportation, giving people their time back, freeing up real estate dedicated to parking and providing access to mobility in all corners of a city,”

Uber

We Could Be Using Apps To Catch The Flying Taxis Pretty Soon