New guidance outlines the planning, design and operations that are necessary to develop practical infrastructure investments that will help make airports and vertiports more viable and accessible. Electric aviation is an innovative field that is rapidly developing to meet both consumer demands and climate-friendly goals for aviation stakeholders as well as reimagine new use cases for aerial mobility. Compared to conventional aircraft that are powered solely by internal combustion engines, an electric aircraft’s propulsion system is either partly or entirely powered by an electric motor. This means that electric aviation has the potential for zero-emission flights with significantly reduced noise levels and, potentially, lower operating costs. Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) combines these technologies with new ways to offer air travel and to provide air traffic management into a safe and efficient aviation system for transporting passengers and cargo within urban and suburban areas, as well as between cities and airports. Gaël Le Bris, WSP USA vice president for aviation planning and senior technical principal, has been at the forefront of electric aviation and AAM as a viable transportation option, helping aviation stakeholders evaluate and implement the latest technologies in electric air travel, assessing new opportunities and solutions for transporting travelers quickly and sustainably. “Our focus is on assisting aviation facility operators, local governments, and other stakeholders to get ready for the next step in aerial innovation with realistic plans to enable air mobility for all and to incorporate these technologies for the benefit of our communities,” Le Bris said. Latest Guidance One of the latest steps WSP has taken in this field is the development of the Transportation Research Board Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Research Report 243, dubbed Urban Air Mobility: An Airport Perspective. Released in February 2023, this report is a comprehensive examination of the emergence of Urban Air Mobility (UAM), particularly the industry’s impacts and emerging opportunities for airports. This report also follows up another study that WSP developed last year, which was ACRP Research Report 236: Preparing Your Airport for Electric Aircraft and Hydrogen Technologies. This served as the first practice-ready guidance document to airport practitioners on the matter for the TRB, a division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. How Electric Aviation Is Transforming TransportatioN with Advanced Air Mobility By Alex Perry
“These are the first-ever guidebooks on the planning, design, and operational aspects of advanced air mobility and electric aviation for airports and vertiports that are accessible to the aviation community,” Le Bris said. Delivering the Vertiport Infrastructure AAM will leverage both existing and new assets to provide on-demand and scheduled aviation services. This could involve turning general aviation airports into community mobility hubs for vertical and short takeoff and landing (V/STOL) aircraft, and adapting rooftops and parking lots to accommodate vertiports. These facilities will have to be connected with ground transportation networks to provide first- and last-mile solutions. According to Le Bris, vertiport development is an ongoing conversation that sits at the intersection of several different disciplines, from aircraft design to flight operations to urban planning and more, with a strong community engagement component. “You also have a myriad of different emerging aviation stakeholders,” Le Bris said. “For instance, utility and hydrogen providers will need to join long-term aviation planning efforts. Also, many aircraft manufacturing startups that are coming into this field are not necessarily familiar and integrated with the mechanisms that have taken decades to develop with fixed-wing commercial aircraft to ensure successful aircraft/airport compatibility.”
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csengineermag.com
JULY 2023
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