Before the first commercial air taxis lift off, real estate firms are racing to lock down sites for landing and liftoff pads for the burgeoning sector.
Plano, Texas-based VertiPorts by Atlantic has hired Cushman & Wakefield to scout for sites in markets including Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, New York, New Jersey and South Florida. The company wants to secure its first locations by late this year with the goal of developing takeoff-and-landing pads for passenger eVTOL, or electric vertical takeoff and landing, aircraft.
The network of vertiports "has the potential to redefine urban mobility,” said a statement from Mike Condon Jr., the Cushman & Wakefield executive vice chair managing the search for the ground leases.
VertiPorts by Atlantic joins other companies including Archer Aviation and Skyports that are on the hunt for these sites that will hold mini-airports of sorts in a bet on the future of flying taxis.
VertiPorts by Atlantic is exploring solutions to fit these properties into crowded cities, from downtown high-rises to peripheral industrial land, Condon said. The search spans both small-footprint options such as 1-acre rooftops on parking structures and larger parcels of up to 5 acres in dense urban areas.
Each vertiport site needs Federal Aviation Administration-approved flight paths, ample electrical power and compliance with accessibility and safety standards — requirements that can take years to meet. Still, industry observers say the first cities to establish vertiport networks could leap ahead in attracting air taxi operators.
Race for landing sites
VertiPorts by Atlantic is backed by Atlantic Aviation, an operator of more than 100 private jet terminals across North America. The company is joining a crowded field of competitors working to stake out space for flying taxis.
In Los Angeles, for instance, UK-based Skyports has lined up eight prospective vertiport locations and is aiming to open its first sites in time for the 2028 Olympics. Its plan is to operate these facilities much like small airports — offering recharging stations, maintenance and passenger lounges — while partnering with aviation companies that will operate the eVTOL taxis.
Archer Aviation, a Silicon Valley eVTOL manufacturer with over $1 billion in funding, plans to launch an air taxi service in Los Angeles by 2026 and is simultaneously developing vertiport networks in New York and the Bay Area.
Archer Aviation has partnerships with United Airlines and the Los Angeles Rams’ Hollywood Park stadium complex to help locate vertiports near key transit hubs. Rival Joby Aviation, backed by Delta Air Lines, is pursuing a similar strategy in New York City, where it’s working to retrofit helipads for future passenger drones.
Meanwhile, regulators have begun laying groundwork that makes projects like VertiPorts by Atlantic possible. The FAA recently introduced new rules for eVTOL aircraft operations, effectively creating a framework for air taxis to start commercial service this decade.
That regulatory progress, combined with advances in battery technology and autonomous flight systems, has turned what once seemed like a sci-fi concept into a tangible plan for urban transit within the next few years.
For the record
Cushman & Wakefield's Kent Hindes and Kylie Rawn are also representing VertiPorts by Atlantic.