[Peetwo]

Su_Spence AC on vertiports?? - 

Via Fort Fumble HQ:

Have your say on the future of vertiport design

A new frontier in aviation is coming and planning is already underway for the aircraft and infrastructure where they will take-off and land.



Vertiports are the futuristic new transport terminals or launch pads being planned for ‘air taxi’ type aircraft which are known in the industry as electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOLs). Vertiports will be the place where passengers are picked up and dropped off, and where the electric aircraft will recharge and be stationed when not in the air.

With these aircraft already under development and looking to be rolled out in the coming years, we have prepared the design guidance needed to build our future vertiports.

The guidance material, also known as an advisory circular, provides a flexible framework for developers to create a vertiport that can be built in different locations and be used by different types of emerging aircraft.

However, before the advisory circular is finalised, we’re seeking industry feedback through a public consultation.

We want to hear from you through our Consultation Hub. Consultation is open until 31 March 2023.

To have your say, visit the consultation today.

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Plus via LMH:

CASA releases Draft Vertiport AC

1 December 2022



CASA today published a draft Advisory Circular (AC) on the design of vertiports to service the emerging urban air mobility (UAM) industry.

UAM envisages fleets of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft shuttling passengers around Australia's major cities, requiring new infrastructure for points of departure and destinations.

The CASA AC aims to provide a flexible framework for developers to enable vertiports to be built with safe approach and departure paths, taking into account the types of aircraft that may be introduced in the future.

Joe Hain, CASA Team Leader Future Aerodromes says Australia is at the forefront of the global effort to introduce vertiports.
"We’ve started the ball rolling by examining and outlining what vertiports could look like, where and how they might operate, as well as the safety requirements needed," he said.

"The aim is that vertiports can be built where they are needed, whether it’s on top of a skyscraper in a high-density city, or in an open space in a regional town."

The draft AC is for piloted aircraft only and covers the fundamental aspects of vertiports, including:

• obstacle clearance
  
• downwash
  
• final approach and take-off (FATO) areas
  
• touch-down and lift-off areas (TLOF)
  
• VTOL-capable aircraft (VCA) taxiways
  
• transitional surfaces
  
• markings
  
• allowable weights
  
• lighting including VASI.
  

As part of the consulation process, CASA has scheduled four webinars to provide more information, beginning on 8 December. The seminars will cover the introduction to vertiports, physical characterisitics, obstacle limitation surfaces and visual aids.

As this is the very first AC on vertiports, CASA is seeking industry feedback on whether the content and structure of the guidance is clear and sufficient, and whether the AC is fit for the purpose of supporting the development of infrastructure necessary for vertiports.

CASA will hold the consultation open for four months, closing it on 31 March 2023. The AC and webinar details are on the CASA Consultation Hub.

And from this week's LMH:

Urban air mobility (UAM) and eVTOLs are certain to dominate the lower flight levels in Australia by the end of the decade. Despite some resistance from within the GA community, the revolution is coming and we're better off being prepared for it than sticking buckets on our heads and hoping it all magically goes away. There is a whole new industry coming: new rules, new infrastructure companies, new investment, new pilot qualifications and a lot of stuff we can't accurately predict yet. This week Eve Air Mobility tackled some questions I sent them about how they see eVTOL operations and the design of vertiports. At the same time, CASA released its first draft Advisory Circular (AC) on vertiport design guidelines. The AC is open for four months, a period of time usually not extended to CASA consultations, which shows the aviation community they're determined to get this right and aren't pretending to have all the answers. But there is something I can't get over: the general public needs to embrace this as well or the commercial aspect will fail. The general public is always very slow to trust big leaps in technology and look askant at stuff that doesn't look right no matter how good the engineering (Beech Starship). Are they going to flock to these new machines that represent large drones moreso that any existing successful aircraft? It is also likely the necessary network of vertiports to support UAM will give rise to a whole new breed of NIMBY. The whole concept is so advanced and so different that we don't even know what all the teething problems are going to be yet. None of that will stop UAM; the birth may be difficult, but the baby is coming.

MTF...P2