SkyDrive to Study Feasibility of Converting Osaka City's 146 Rooftop Emergency Helipads into eVTOL Vertiports

SkyDrive Inc. has announced a feasibility study to repurpose Osaka City's existing rooftop emergency landing sites as eVTOL vertiports, under the Cabinet Office's Super City Initiative. The project will be conducted with partners including Osaka Metro, Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc., Chodai Co., Ltd., and the Airport Environment Improvement Foundation.

Osaka City currently has 146 rooftop emergency landing sites, marked with an 'H' and located mainly on buildings over 100 meters tall under local fire safety rules. These sites have reinforced flooring, fire suppression systems, and lighting, but are used only for emergency disaster relief; the study will evaluate whether they can serve as alternate vertiports for eVTOL aircraft unable to reach their intended destination.

The assessment will cover airspace mapping, Civil Aeronautics Act compliance, wind and noise conditions, floor load capacity, passenger flow during diversions, aircraft transport logistics for mechanical failures, and charging infrastructure feasibility. Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City will handle administrative coordination, Osaka Metro will lead project management, SkyDrive will handle survey design and regulatory compliance, Kansai Electric Power will inspect electrical equipment, Chodai will conduct technical verification, and the Airport Environment Improvement Foundation will address noise impact.

SkyDrive and Osaka Metro previously collaborated at Expo 2025 Osaka and are targeting commercial eVTOL service launch in Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City by approximately 2028. SkyDrive began production of its SKYDRIVE eVTOL in March 2024 at a plant owned by Suzuki Motor Corporation and is seeking certification from civil aviation authorities in Japan and the United States.