A new market study from the German flagcarrier casts a dispassionate eye on the prospects for the much-vaunted urban air mobility sector.

French manufacturer Turbotech plans to flight test its under-development turbogenerator later this year, claiming it will provide transformative power options for hybrid-electric aircraft.

Special-purpose acquisition companies appear to be at the forefront of the next investment wave for the sector as cash-hungry startups crave more capital.

But a new study from Deloitte and the Aerospace Industries Association warns that the U.S. could miss out on the opportunity without an adequate national strategy.

Both have received funding from the UK government's Future Flight Challenge initiative to promote new, reduced-carbon modes of air transporation.

The volunteer committees of groups such as SAE International, ASTM, and Eurocae are establishing standards that plug gaps in how regulators can certify aircraft.

GKN and 15 partners are being supported by a new £4.5 million grant from the UK government's Future Flight Challenge Fund.

The rotorcraft manufacturer has yet to detail its plans to bring the freight-carrying unmanned aircraft into commercial service.

Joby Aviation and Wisk are among the vehicle partners supporting the U.S. agency's Advanced Air Mobility program

Currently, only a few thousand civil aircraft are built worldwide each year, but the new AAM sector claims it will be turning out tens of thousands of units annually.

The program has received a government grant worth almost $4 million, following recent support for hydrogen propulsion projects.

The partners may put their first set of vertiports in Colombia, with commercial operations possibly starting in 2026.

Initially, H2GEAR will power aircraft with up to 19 seats, but it could be further developed for larger airliners later.

Cyrus Sigari told the Vertical Flight Society's Electric VTOL Symposium that the time is right to back new aircraft developers and service providers.

Lilium has previously announced plans for a first vertiport to be built at Lake Nona near Orlando.

The aircraft will serve middle-mile freight distribution routes of between 50 and 300 miles when it enters service in 2025.

Its drones are delivering medications in Malawi and will soon be delivering Covid vaccines elsewhere in Africa and also in Southeast Asia.

Faradair aims to have a prototype of the BEHA aircraft built by 2024.

Vancouver, on Canada's Pacific Coast, already has 54 heliports and is viewed as a likely early-adopter city for advanced air mobility.

The agency is now working on type certification with the developers of 30 electric and hybrid-electric aircraft and also with seven manufacturers of new propulsion systems.