Tehran’s International Mehrabad Airport will conduct air taxi trial flights in January 2021 along four routes, according to a member of Iran Airports Company’s General Aviation Committee.
“The trial flights of air taxis will begin in the 11th month of the current [Iranian] year [Jan. 20-Feb. 18, 2021] and four cities, namely Arak, Zanjan, Semnan and Shahroud, have been selected as destinations for these flights from the capital’s Mehrabad Ariport,” Arman Bayat was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
“Air taxis halted operations since the fiscal 1980-81. Due to a lack of operational, commercial and financial data on such flights in the country, the private sector has been skeptical of the amount of returns on such investments and considers it a high-risk economic activity. Therefore, the government has taken it upon itself to start trial flights of air taxis after around four decades.”
An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand.
Air taxi services have recently gained traction in Iran. There are more than 90 airports across the country, a considerable number of which are inactive. A total of 300 small aircraft are also being operated in Iran, which makes flying taxi services highly attractive for investors. However, lack of regulations has been reportedly hindering the development of the business.
Imam Khomeini Airport City, located in south Tehran, is also expected to start operating air taxi services in the country’s capital city.
“A domestic airliner has invested about 1,100 billion rials [$4.23 million]) in the project,” Sajjad Kamalipour, IKAC’s deputy for economic affairs, was quoted as saying by Cannews, a local media outlet specialized in covering aviation developments.
“The project is being developed on a six-hectare area inside the airport city,” he added.
According to Kamalipor, Pouya Air, the investor of the project, has so far purchased two Embraer ERJ 145ER passenger aircraft and one Bombardier Challenger 604.
“The company is expected to add one more aircraft to its fleet in the near future,” he added.
Need for alternative modes of transportation and increase in road traffic congestion have triggered demand for air taxi worldwide. However, high differential fare and strict regulations related to aviation license impede the market’s growth. On the other hand, supportive government initiatives offer lucrative opportunities for the market.
According to the report published by Allied Market Research, the global air taxi market is expected to reach $817.50 million by 2021 and earn $6.63 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 26.2% from 2021 to 2030.
The global air taxi market is segmented on the basis of propulsion type, aircraft type, passenger capacity and region. Based on the propulsion system, the market is categorized into parallel hybrid, electric, turboshaft and turboelectric propulsion.
The electric segment is projected to account for the highest share in the global air taxi market, contributing to more than two-fifths of the total share in 2021, and is estimated to maintain its leadership position throughout the forecast period.
In addition, this segment would grow at the largest CAGR of 30.4% from 2021 to 2030, GlobeNewswire reported.
