Bravo Air is to purchase up to five SD-05 aircraft from SkyDrive. The agreement also includes the formation of a partnership to conduct joint studies in the development of use cases originating from Augusta Regional airport, Georgia, to scale AAM within the region. It aims to establish a last-mile mobility, eVTOL air taxi network that connects Augusta Regional airport to various destinations across the region. The venture has received significant support from state and local governments.

VP operations Dann Standard says: “Bravo Air is thrilled to be working with SkyDrive on revolutionising AAM in the United States. Bravo Air was honoured to have recently visited SkyDrive in Japan and had the opportunity to meet the teams working diligently to bring AAM development into reality. We are excited to be a part of a collaborative effort to bring more environmentally conscious air travel options to the Augusta area and beyond.”

Augusta Regional airport executive director Herbert Judon adds: “The airport staff have worked diligently to prepare the infrastructure necessary to support the needs of this new industry. We are pleased to see this nascent industry start to grow and expand in our market.”

Tomohiro Fukuzawa, founder and CEO of SkyDrive, says: “As we embark on this new partnership with Bravo Air, we are thrilled to witness not only the growth of SkyDrive but also the broader eVTOL industry in the US market. This collaboration with Bravo Air marks a significant step forward in our shared objective of advancing AAM development, particularly in the southeast region. We are excited about the transformative potential of this partnership and the opportunities it presents for innovation, sustainability and continued progress in our industry.”

This collaboration builds off SkyDrive’s existing relationship with key stakeholders in South Carolina and the progress made to make its air taxi services available there.

SkyDrive is committed to collaborating closely with Bravo Air and the State of Georgia to cultivate a robust operational AAM infrastructure that benefits regional airports and operators with the goal of creating a connected, environmentally friendly air taxi network that serves the needs of local communities while promoting economic growth and opportunity.