Is Now the Time for Urban Air Mobility to Take Off?
Five questions for progressing on the path toward electrified flight
On May 16, 1977, 5:32 p.m. EST, a New York Airways helicopter landed on the Pan Am Building in Midtown Manhattan to retrieve guests and then return to JFK International Airport, where its passengers would be able to embark on their flight seamlessly. It was a vision, some 45 years ago, of what is now termed "urban air mobility" (UAM).
Although such airport transfer services remain available in New York City and many other places, the events of that day have become a cautionary tale for flight over crowded cities. A little more than two minutes after touching down, the helicopter tipped on its side when the right landing gear failed, and the running rotor blades struck the rooftop helipad. The flight crew and four passengers inside sustained minor injuries, but four more passengers waiting to board were killed, as well as a pedestrian on Madison Avenue nearly 900 feet below when a blade that had broken in two flew over the edge of the building.
