Cochin airport looks at vertiport infrastructure for air taxis
Sarla Aviation entered into an agreement with Cochin International Airport (CIAL) to explore the integration of vertiport infrastructure for air taxis
- Apr 15, 2026,
- Updated Apr 15, 2026 9:39 AM IST
Sarla Aviation, an urban air mobility startup, has signed an agreement with Cochin International Airport (CIAL) to explore integrating vertiport infrastructure within or adjacent to Kochi Airport.
The company is exploring corridors, Kochi to Munnar, Alleppey, Kovalam, Sabarimala and Thrissur. While leisure travel is the early driver, medical and pilgrimage corridors are expected to also push the use of air taxis in the state.
Sarla's SHUNYA is being developed with an ambulance configuration in the works, and the company has also entered into an agreement with Aster Medcity, Kochi.
“Helicopters cost Rs 1-2 lakh per hour to operate. Hospital helipads are rare, and pilots are scarce. Maintenance supply chains are broken. Insurance frameworks don't exist. And nobody has stitched together the end-to-end emergency response chain. Helicopter air ambulances in India remain a luxury, not a democratic, life-saving service,” said Payal Satish, Chief Commercial Officer, Sarla Aviation.
Sarla Aviation announced the commencement of ground testing for its half-scale electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) demonstrator, SYLLA SYL-X1, at the company’s Bengaluru test facility in December 2025.
With a 7.5-meter wingspan, SYL-X1 is the largest and most advanced private eVTOL demonstrator currently under development in India. With ground testing now underway, Sarla Aviation’s air taxi program enters its core validation phase, moving decisively beyond digital concepts and laboratory-scale experimentation into real aircraft-scale testing. The company said.
The current demonstrator is a functional sub-scale aircraft, purpose-built to validate structural behaviour, propulsion integration, and system-level safety architecture at a meaningful scale. Unlike academic prototypes or small RC-scale platforms, SYL-X1 is designed with certification in mind from the outset, forming a direct bridge to Sarla Aviation’s 15-meter wingspan full-scale aircraft.
Sarla Aviation, an urban air mobility startup, has signed an agreement with Cochin International Airport (CIAL) to explore integrating vertiport infrastructure within or adjacent to Kochi Airport.
The company is exploring corridors, Kochi to Munnar, Alleppey, Kovalam, Sabarimala and Thrissur. While leisure travel is the early driver, medical and pilgrimage corridors are expected to also push the use of air taxis in the state.
Sarla's SHUNYA is being developed with an ambulance configuration in the works, and the company has also entered into an agreement with Aster Medcity, Kochi.
“Helicopters cost Rs 1-2 lakh per hour to operate. Hospital helipads are rare, and pilots are scarce. Maintenance supply chains are broken. Insurance frameworks don't exist. And nobody has stitched together the end-to-end emergency response chain. Helicopter air ambulances in India remain a luxury, not a democratic, life-saving service,” said Payal Satish, Chief Commercial Officer, Sarla Aviation.
Sarla Aviation announced the commencement of ground testing for its half-scale electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) demonstrator, SYLLA SYL-X1, at the company’s Bengaluru test facility in December 2025.
With a 7.5-meter wingspan, SYL-X1 is the largest and most advanced private eVTOL demonstrator currently under development in India. With ground testing now underway, Sarla Aviation’s air taxi program enters its core validation phase, moving decisively beyond digital concepts and laboratory-scale experimentation into real aircraft-scale testing. The company said.
The current demonstrator is a functional sub-scale aircraft, purpose-built to validate structural behaviour, propulsion integration, and system-level safety architecture at a meaningful scale. Unlike academic prototypes or small RC-scale platforms, SYL-X1 is designed with certification in mind from the outset, forming a direct bridge to Sarla Aviation’s 15-meter wingspan full-scale aircraft.