Urban-Air Port

Urban-Air Port designs, develops, and operates ground, air, and digital infrastructure for advanced air mobility (AAM), including air taxis and autonomous delivery drones. Founded in 2016 by Ricky Sandhu, the company aims to remove the primary constraint to sustainable air mobility by creating a network of vertiports. Sandhu, who previously worked on an Urban Air Mobility program at Airbus, identified the critical need for ground infrastructure to support the emerging eVTOL aircraft industry.

The company's main offerings are compact, modular, and rapidly deployable vertiports that serve as multifunctional hubs. These hubs facilitate aircraft command and control, charging and refueling, and cargo and passenger loading. The patented design allows for a 60% smaller footprint than traditional heliports, making them suitable for dense urban environments. Urban-Air Port's product line includes 'Air-One', 'MarineOne' for offshore operations, 'ResilienceOne' for disaster and defense missions, and 'CityBox' and 'DocksBox' for cargo logistics. The business model focuses on providing Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), which includes leasing its patented, prefabricated vertiport systems to clients. This approach allows for scalability, where clients can start with a basic setup and expand as demand grows.

Urban-Air Port has secured significant partnerships and funding. It received investment from Hyundai's Supernal division, a major eVTOL developer. This partnership was a landmark event, being the first time a major eVTOL company invested in a ground infrastructure developer. The company plans to develop over 200 vertiports globally. In April 2022, Urban-Air Port launched 'Air-One' in Coventry, UK, the world's first demonstration of a fully operational vertiport for eVTOL aircraft.

Keywords: vertiport infrastructure, advanced air mobility, eVTOL, urban air mobility, drone delivery, air taxi infrastructure, sustainable aviation, Ricky Sandhu, modular airports, ground infrastructure as a service, Supernal, Hyundai, Air-One, off-grid airports, passenger air taxis, cargo logistics, disaster emergency management, sustainable mobility, aviation technology, aerospace infrastructure