Societal acceptance of future air mobility operations in urban environments

On 16 June, the Executive Director of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Mr Patrick Ky, presented the results of a study on the societal acceptance of future air mobility operations in urban environments during an exchange of views with the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism.

The Aerospace and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD) welcomes the EASA study, which is an important tool for moving the discussion on urban air mobility (UAM) forward. Originally published on 19 May, the study expresses the results from targeted research, a literature review, market analysis, surveys and interviews, whereby around 4,000 citizens in six European locations (Barcelona, Budapest, Hamburg, Milan, Öresund and Paris) were asked for their views on UAM. Some of the key take-aways of the study are:

1. EU citizens initially and spontaneously expressed a positive attitude towards and interest in UAM, seeing it as a new and attractive means of mobility, and a majority are ready to try it out.
2. The notion of public interest is a determining factor for acceptance: use cases for the benefit of the community, such as medical or emergency transport or connecting remote areas, are better supported.
3. The main benefits expected from UAM are faster, cleaner and extended connectivity.
4. However, when encouraged to reflect upon the concrete consequences of potential UAM operations in their city, EU citizens indicated that they want to limit their own exposure to safety, noise, security and environmental impact.

ASD strongly believes that all urban mobility stakeholders must work together to engage with the public and mobility ecosystem, to look into the opportunities and challenges, and unfold the potential of UAM.
This is just the beginning of the discussion. ASD stands ready to contribute to this dialogue with its members’ expertise on technical, business and legal issues and knowledge on aspects of wider mobility ecosystems and social acceptance.

You can find more about ASD’s role as the focal point for new and traditional civil aviation in Europe