The German firm, Lilium Aviation, is landing its air taxis in Orlando by 2025. They plan to build a 56,000-square-foot transportation hub in the area and offer high paying jobs.
Lilium Aviation plans to bring its five-seated all-electric air taxis to the Lake Nona community, which could be the start of building a massive transportation network in the United States. The project costs around $25 million that is set to make 143 new jobs by 2025.
Powered by 36 all-electric engines, these air taxis are vertical takeoff aircraft six to seven times quiet than the helicopter during takeoff.
Lilium Aviation's air taxi
Lilium Aviation officially unveiled its air taxi by 2019, six years after it initially conceived the idea of air taxis, according to MailOnline. It has two fixed wings, one main wing with four flaps on its rear-end, and a 'canard' wings at the front, which has two flaps. All the flaps can move independently.
The German firm said that they used their pioneering all-electric jet engines on each flap to enable the aircraft to pivot and change the direction of thrust they create.
Moreover, Lilium used thrust vectoring commonly employed by space rockets and fighter jets to allow both vertical and horizontal movements in the jets.
Lilium explained that since spacecraft can't rely on flaps while in space to direct the vehicle to a specific direction, the solution is to adapt the angle of the thrust the spacecraft generates. In a similar premise, Lilium Aviation used this concept to direct and move the thrust of their air taxis.
Furthermore, they note that the air taxis can change the revolutions per minute and angle the three engine sets to a precise trajectory. The jet is also capable of traveling 186 miles on a single charge, although the transportation network in Orlando would take the passengers on trips of 12 miles.
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Lilium Aviation's investment and jobs
The $25 million investment of Lilium Aviation in Orlando will create 143 jobs by 2025. According to Bizjournals, Orlando is offering the German firm a tax rebate worth up to $831,250 over nine years. They estimate that they could generate earnings up to $1.7 million in economic impact within ten years.
More so, the jobs are estimated to pay $66,451annually, which is higher than the average salary of the metro of $46,140, based on the data by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The air taxis are capable of a vertical takeoff like a helicopter, according to the fiscal impact statement for the agreement, which describes the transportation hub as a vertiport.
Lilium Aviation has previously pursued regional hubs in Europe for its vertical takeoff vehicle, called Lilium Jet. Last September, they have announced partnerships with two German airports that will serve as hubs for the Lilium transportation network.
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