15 Japanese Companies Led by MUFG Bank to Study 2028 Air Taxi Service in Kansai Using SkyDrive Aircraft
Why It MattersCorporate consortia, rather than airlines alone, are now shaping Japan's advanced air mobility market, with vertiport sites and charging infrastructure as the limiting factor in dense urban areas.
MUFG Bank and other major Japanese companies from a range of industries have joined forces to study how to commercially deploy air taxis in western Japan, including sustainable business models, necessary infrastructure and ways to create demand through tourism. In total, 15 companies are taking part. Japanese start-up SkyDrive's compact aircraft, which can take off and land vertically without a runway, will be used in the service targeting the Kansai region, which includes Osaka and Kyoto prefectures. Companies joining the study may set up a jointly owned company to operate the service.
SkyDrive, based in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, held more than a dozen demonstration flights at last year's World Exposition in Osaka, using its battery-powered multi-rotor aircraft that can carry a pilot and up to two passengers. Other participants include regional lender Senshu Ikeda Bank, non-life insurer Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance and leasing company Mitsubishi HC Capital; the remaining companies were not identified.
The companies will meet regularly to pool expertise and consider vertiport plans (take-off and landing facilities for air taxis), charging infrastructure and appropriate fares, and will examine the service's commercial viability. They will decide around next summer whether to set up a jointly owned operating company. SkyDrive, which is working with Osaka Metro to put flying cars into practical use, said the lack of take-off and landing sites is a major obstacle to widespread use, especially in land-scarce urban areas.
Major Japanese airlines are also preparing similar services using aircraft developed by other companies. Soracle, a joint venture between Japan Airlines and trading house Sumitomo, aims to begin commercial operations in fiscal 2028 or later, using aircraft developed by US company Archer Aviation. ANA Holdings has teamed up with Joby Aviation, a US electric aircraft developer backed by Toyota Motor. Shin Kitamura, a senior managing executive officer at MUFG Bank, said at a news conference in Osaka in October: "We want to explore how to develop a new form of transport infrastructure."
