Van Nuys, California-based aviation service provider Helinet has joined Urban Movement Labs' (UML) growing roster of Urban Air Mobility Partnership members. This collaboration will explore the future of air travel hand-in-hand with eVTOL manufacturers and the advanced air mobility industry, to plan the arrival of advanced air mobility aircraft in Los Angeles.

The Urban Air Mobility Partnership, announced by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti in December 2020, is committed to a community-first approach rooted in an equitable, safe and sustainable planning process. This process was first outlined in the Principles of the Urban Sky, co-authored by the World Economic Forum and the City of Los Angeles. Now entering its second year, the Partnership has added more members and continues its work to help Los Angeles define the future of mobility.

This partnership will explore how aviation operators like Helinet may integrate new eVTOL technology into their operations to reduce community impacts while enhancing safety and efficiency. Lessons learned from the partnership will inform policy and regulatory decisions that will shape urban air mobility in cities. For example, Helinet's experience in chartered passenger travel, transporting medical supplies, the time-sensitive delivery of organs, rapid parcel delivery, aerial firefighting and filming from the sky will inform a future where these applications can be completed by eVTOLs. In addition, it will inform ground-based infrastructure needs such as additional electric charging capacity at both Helinet's facilities and commercial airports more broadly.

“Our Urban Air Mobility Partnership will benefit from Helinet's experience as a commercial aviation operator, informing policy development for both aerial operations and ground-based infrastructure needs. Additionally, the social-focused use cases, such as transporting critically ill children to hospitals, organ delivery and firefighting missions, represent a huge value to the partnership members,” says UML executive director Sam Morrissey.

Helinet currently transports over 900 organs per year. As the primary helicopter provider for Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), Helinet has two dedicated aircraft to transport critically ill children. Since the inception of this programme in 1998, Helinet has reached more than 10,000 trips in support of CHLA.

“Helinet values the benefits of new eVTOL technology, which can positively impact the environment and mitigate noise impacts on local communities," adds CEO Kathryn Purwin. "This partnership with UML will let us explore route opportunities, charging station technology implementation and the testing of advanced air mobility aircraft.”