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Wisk Aero partners with Long Beach to develop Advanced Air Mobility in Southern California

February 23, 2022  By  UAV Canada Staff


Wisk Aero is now working on its 6th generation eVTOL aircraft. (Image: Wisk Aero)

Wisk Aero on Feb. 22 announced a partnership with the City of Long Beach, California, through its Long Beach Economic Partnership, with the goal of developing Advanced Air Mobility in Southern California.

Tracing its roots back to 2010, Wisk describes itself as the first U.S. developer of an all-electric, autonomous air taxi. The company is now working on its 6th generation eVTOL aircraft.

Through this new agreement Wisk and the Long Beach Economic Partnership (LBEP) will establish an AAM working group composed of business, local government, and community leaders that will focus on evaluating, planning, and implementing AAM in Long Beach. The working group will be looking at autonomous flight. Wisk and LBEP will co-chair the working group for an initial two-year term.

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Over the next two years, the working group will examine four areas to evaluate the opportunities and impacts that AAM represents for Long Beach, including: An analysis of the economic impact and workforce development, community acceptance and outreach, integration of autonomous AAM into city transportation plans, and U.S. federal and state government funding opportunities.

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With support from Wisk, LBEP will coordinate the development of an Economic Impact Study that will be conducted by the Cal State Long Beach (CSULB) Office of Economic Research. The study will estimate the annual economic impact of AAM operations in Southern California and other regional state economies. The results of the study are expected to be completed later this year.

“With its rich aerospace past, current resurgence via Space Beach, and its central position in the LA Metro area, Long Beach is an ideal city for all-electric, autonomous urban flight opportunities,” said Gary Gysin, CEO of Wisk. “Through this partnership, Long Beach has the opportunity to be one of the first cities to realize the economic and environmental benefits of AAM.”


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