Noida to Gurgaon in minutes? Skip the road. Take the air taxi — by 2028?

Noida International Airport will allocate space on its premises for proof-of-concept trials, vertiports and air-taxi charging stations in collaboration with the Chennai-based ePlane Company.

The ePlane Company, operated by Ubifly Technologies Private Limited, aims to launch its flying taxi in 2028. The aircraft is expected to travel 100 km on a single charge, with fares estimated at 2.5 times the cost of an Uber ride.

Noida International Airport and ePlane have entered into an agreement that paves the way for e200X-powered airport-to-airport transit, intra-city commutes, and emergency air ambulance services across the region.

The agreement establishes a comprehensive framework for jointly developing the regulatory standard operating procedures (SOPs), Vertiport Management Systems, and operational ecosystem required to deploy ePlane’s flagship e200X aircraft.

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The infrastructure partnership follows recent engineering progress, including the public unveiling of the full-scale e200X PT-01 prototype. With ground testing underway, the MoU is intended to ensure that aircraft development is matched by parallel progress in ground operations and airspace integration.

To facilitate these operations, the airport will provide space for proof-of-concept trials, vertiports, and charging stations. It will also align its standard operating procedures with the requirements of eVTOL services.

"Noida International Airport’s long-term vision is closely linked with bringing innovative, future-ready infrastructure to the region. Integrating Advanced Air Mobility into our airport framework is an important part of our commitment to seamless, multi-modal connectivity," said Daniel Bircher, Chairman, Noida International Airport.

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Meanwhile, the ePlane Company will focus on securing the necessary clearances from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), while conducting prototype and flight tests of the e200X aircraft.

"This MoU with Noida International Airport allows us to systematically validate our operational models using drone trials before transitioning to piloted e200X flights. It is a pragmatic, step-by-step approach to ensuring that when our aircraft are certified, the airport ecosystem is fully equipped to deliver on our core promise: bypassing urban gridlock and compressing hours of road travel into minutes of safe, emission-free transit for both passengers and critical medical care," said Dr Satyanarayanan Chakravarthy, Founder and Director of Ubifly Technologies.

The two entities will jointly engage with regulators, Air Traffic Control (ATC), and state governments to establish safety frameworks and Vertiport Management Systems, along with AI-assisted fleet scheduling integrated with smart-city systems.