Autonomous air taxis have gotten complicated with all the promises and pilot programs flying around. As someone who tracked this space back when eVTOL was still a concept sketch, I learned everything there is to know about what separates real progress from press releases. Today, I will share it all with you.
Wisk Aero just crossed 1,500 autonomous test flights. That number matters because every flight generates data that eventually convinces regulators to let passengers onboard.
Why 1,500 Matters
Probably should have led with this section, honestly: flight testing is where aerospace programs live or die. You can simulate forever, but actual autonomous decision-making in actual weather with actual failure modes—that only happens when you fly.
These 1,500 flights span multiple prototype generations, diverse weather conditions, different airspace configurations, and crucially, failure scenarios. Wisk has systematically demonstrated what happens when things go wrong. Regulators need to see that before they’ll approve autonomous passenger flight.
The company runs primary testing from New Zealand, which offers better regulatory flexibility and airspace access for experimental autonomous operations. US testing supplements that as certification requirements get more specific.
The Autonomy-First Bet
Most air taxi companies plan to start with human pilots and add autonomy later. Wisk skipped that step entirely. They’re building autonomous-only from day one.
That’s what makes their approach endearing to us aviation tech watchers—it’s a bigger swing with a bigger payoff if it works. Human pilots are expensive, need training, require rest, and limit fleet scalability. An autonomous operator can deploy more aircraft with lower operating costs.
The tradeoff is certification complexity. Proving an autonomous system safe enough to carry passengers without anyone at the controls is harder than certifying a piloted aircraft. Wisk is betting the upfront effort pays off in operational efficiency later.
The system handles everything from takeoff through landing without human intervention. Ground supervisors monitor and can intervene, but the aircraft is designed to manage normal and abnormal situations on its own.
The Generation 6 Aircraft
Wisk’s current design uses twelve lift rotors for vertical takeoff and landing plus a pusher propeller for forward cruise. The fixed-wing configuration provides range and efficiency that pure multicopters can’t match.
All-electric propulsion powers trips up to 90 miles—plenty for urban and suburban transportation missions. Four passengers fit in the autonomous cabin, which feels strange to think about until you remember elevators have been doing something similar for over a century.
Triple-redundant flight controls keep things safe. Multiple independent computers must agree on commands, and the system continues operating even after multiple failures. That redundancy philosophy comes straight from Boeing’s commercial aircraft heritage.
The Certification Challenge
Wisk is pursuing FAA certification under Part 23 for the aircraft and Part 135 for commercial operations. The autonomous elements require novel approaches because existing regulations assume someone is flying the thing.
The company has worked extensively with FAA specialists developing policy for autonomous aircraft. All that flight test data builds the safety case—demonstrating that autonomous systems can meet or exceed human pilot safety levels.
Realistic timeline? Several more years, with commercial operations targeted before decade’s end. The pace depends as much on regulatory development as technical achievement. The FAA is writing new rules while certifying the aircraft that needs them.
The Competition
Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, Lilium, Vertical Aerospace—the advanced air mobility sector has plenty of well-funded players. Most competitors plan piloted operations first, with autonomy as a future upgrade.
If Wisk gets autonomous certification, competitors will need to develop and certify those capabilities later while Wisk is already scaling. If autonomous certification takes longer than expected, piloted competitors reach market first and build operational experience.
Boeing’s backing gives Wisk aerospace expertise and resources that pure startups lack. The partnership combines Boeing’s certification experience with Wisk’s startup agility. That matters when you’re navigating novel regulatory territory.
What Operations Would Look Like
Picture vertiports scattered through urban areas—rooftops, parking structures, dedicated facilities. Point-to-point air transportation bypassing surface traffic. Suburb to city center, airport to downtown, cross-city routes that take an hour by car.
Smartphone booking makes it accessible. Tap an app, get a ride. Autonomous operation keeps costs competitive with premium ground transportation rather than traditional helicopter charter pricing.
Noise concerns matter for community acceptance. Electric propulsion is significantly quieter than helicopters, and Wisk’s designs optimize for noise reduction. Where vertiports can be located depends heavily on whether neighbors find the operation tolerable.
What’s Next
Testing continues expanding the operational envelope and building certification evidence. The program is moving toward more representative operations—conditions matching actual commercial service, not just controlled demonstrations.
Manufacturing development runs parallel to certification. When approval comes, production capability needs to exist. Scaling from prototype testing to commercial production is its own set of challenges.
The autonomy timeline will face scrutiny as Wisk moves from demonstration flying toward passenger certification requirements. Those requirements don’t get easier as you approach the finish line—they get harder. Whether the company’s ambitious approach pays off is one of the more interesting questions in aviation right now.
