JAKARTA - A fleet of flying electric taxis will take off in Sao Paulo in 2025. This was made possible after an agreement was reached between Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes and Irish lessor Avolon to buy or lease 250 aircraft.
Gol said on Tuesday that the VA-X4 eVTOL, a vertical flight and landing aircraft, was produced by UK's Vertical Aerospace. They, will increase domestic regional offerings and help Brazil achieve its carbon neutrality goal by 2050, as well as lift Gol's stake in Sao Paulo.
"The VA-X4 is ideal for a city like Sao Paulo," said Vertical Aerospace CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick in a statement. "Our eVTOL will change the way we travel around high-density, traffic-heavy cities."
Avolon, which has agreed to buy up to 500 planes from the British manufacturer, said it was close to reaching an agreement with the Asian carrier for the remaining 250 jets, with a deal expected in 6-12 months.
"I fully expect us to place all of our initial 500 orders within that time frame," Avolon Chief Commercial Officer Paul Geaney told Reuters. "We will look for markets to Asia after Sao Paulo."
Gol said the move was part of his commercial strategy to invest in regional air transport. The airline intends to open new routes to "underserved domestic markets".
Preferred stock in Gol was up 3.3% by 15:00 GMT to 19.48 reais, while the broader Bovespa index was up about 0.8%.
Gol said in the securities filings that the holding company owned by Gol's controlling shareholder, Grupo Compore, would finance the transaction, but without providing clear figures.
"The initial step for the new cooperation is to conduct a feasibility study, including aircraft certification and analysis of the required infrastructure," said a Gol source as quoted by Reuters.
Avolon, which says it believes flying taxis can catch passengers more quickly than planes. They expect to complete the VA-X4 certification process in Brazil by 2024.
Vertical Aerospace is backed by American Airlines (AAL.O), which recently announced a three-year exclusive codeshare and $200 million equity investment in Gol.
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