Vertiport developer Skyportz has announced the creation of a wholly owned subsidiary, dubbed Wilbur Air, which will operate electric and hybrid aircraft from its future network of verti- and stol ports.
According to Skyportz, the new airline will operate aircraft from a variety of partners to “facilitate everything from heavy lifting drone deliveries to short- and long-haul passenger travel.” Interestingly, while its parent company hitherto has been in the business of promoting the development of vertiports for eVTOL operations, the first partnership announced by the new airline is with US hSTOL aircraft developer Electra.Aero, which will see Wilbur Air take the first 100 examples of the type delivered to Australia.
According to Electra, thanks to a blown flap configuration, its aircraft will only require 91.44 metres (300ft) of runway for take off while carrying a payload of up to nine passengers and 204 kg (450 lbs) baggage up to 500 nm with 45 minutes reserve. Electra doesn’t say if that is over a 50ft obstacle or not on its website, so presumably not. Nor, while the 45-minute reserve implies IFR, Electra doesn’t say so. So, presumably, it’s a reserve that exceeds VFR minima by 15 minutes rather than an actual IFR reserve.
Even with that impressive runway performance, the resulting STOL ports will require considerably more real estate compared with a VTOL aircraft with all the attendant planning and permit considerations that STOL ops imply.
Not something that appears to dismay Skyportz founder Clem Newton-Brown, who says, “There is enormous interest from the property industry to help us break the nexus between aviation and airports. In the future, commercial and industrial landholders could be able to establish mini airports and vertistops to become part of the Skyportz network.” Newton-Brown goes on to say that the parent company is “Working with governments, air regulators and communities to establish the parameters for the introduction of vertiport infrastructure and short take-off and landing runways.”
Meanwhile, Newton-Brown says that Wilbur Air “will be establishing operational partnerships across Australia with existing small charter and helicopter companies interested in moving into advanced air mobility and flying under the Wilbur Air brand with priority access to our Skyportz vertiports.”
