Turkey’s Gözen orders 100 eVTOL air taxis from lessor Avolon
Irish aircraft leasing company Avolon said on Tuesday it had set up a partnership with Turkish aviation group Gözen Holding to pioneer electric Vertical Take Off and Landing (eVTOL) flying in Turkey using aircraft it plans to buy from Britain’s Vertical Aerospace.
Under the deal, Gözen – one of Turkey’s leading aviation conglomerates and owner of Freebird Airlines – will buy or lease up to 50 eVOTL aircraft from Avolon, with options to purchase or lease another 50.
The idea is to use the new “flying taxi” technology to leapfrog chronic traffic jams in Istanbul, one of the world’s most congested cities, and connect the city of 15 million people to nearby Turkish tourist resorts, Avolon said in a statement.
The Dublin-based leasing firm, headed by Domhnal Slattery, went public in New York in December after completing a $2.2 billion special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal with Broadstone Acquisition Corp.
It is among the launch customers for up to 1,000 eVOTL aircraft being developed by Vertical Aerospace.
The agreement between the Irish company and Istanbul-based company marks a milestone for Avolon, one of the world’s biggest jet-leasing firms, which made an early bet on flying taxis. In June last year, Avolon ordered 500 VX4 eVTOL aircraft from the Bristol-based company and went on to announce deals to place them with Japan Airlines, AirAsia and GOL in Brazil.
Avolon CEO Domhnal Slattery said in a company statement that “the opportunities to deploy the VX4 are enormous and, as is evident with our placement progress to date, zero-emissions eVTOL air travel will reshape the short-haul travel market.”
“Our partnership with Gözen Holding will create a pioneer in UAM (urban air mobility) in Turkey, bringing sustainable air travel to the region,” he said.
“We will continue working with other partners that want to purchase or lease the VX4 in order to fully seize the potential market and demand for this aircraft,” Slattery added.
Mekin Gözen, CEO of Gözen Holding, also commented that they are delighted to announce the partnership and VX4 order with Avolon.
“As an integral part of the Turkish aviation industry, we feel it is incumbent upon us to be at the forefront of the sustainability movement and that is why we identified Avolon, and Vertical’s VX4, as the zero-emissions eVTOL aircraft that will revolutionize air travel,” he said.
“We strongly believe that the deployment of the VX4 will dramatically reshape Istanbul and the rest of Turkey. Our partnership with Avolon will see us create an eVTOL ecosystem in the country and is the first step in delivering sustainable air travel to the region, positioning it as a global leader,” Gözen added.
Avolon said that with the Gözen placement, its launch order for the aircraft had been oversubscribed by 50 options.
The deals reflect the growing interest in battery-powered aircraft that can take off and land vertically, offering a new way for travelers to beat traffic and hop between cities.
The four-passenger, one-pilot VX4 is projected to have speeds up to 200 mph (321.87 kph), a range over 100 miles, is near-silent when in flight, with zero operating emissions and low cost per passenger mile. Upon its introduction, the VX4 will be designed to the safest certification standards, set by EASA, at the same level as commercial aircraft. The VX4 is expected to open up advanced air mobility to a whole new range of passengers and transform how we travel.
