Lilium announces its first US vertiport hub location in Lake Nona, Orlando, Florida — set to open by 2025
Lilium will launch its first vertiport hub in Lake Nona, Orlando, Florida, by 2025 — connecting more than 20 million people within a 186-mile radius and serving some of the state’s major cities.
Lake Nona is one of the fastest-growing master-planned communities in the USA, and the Munich-based aviation company has partnered with Tavistock Development Company and the City of Orlando to create the country’s first urban and regional air mobility network. It will create more than 100 jobs in the area, with hundreds more opportunities expected to follow across the state.
Dr. Remo Gerber, Chief Operating Officer of Lilium, said: “We are thrilled to partner with Tavistock and build the first stretch of Florida’s high-speed electric transportation network with Central Florida at its core.
“It shows that regional high-speed air mobility can be built by private initiative and give communities such as Lake Nona, which can also serve Orlando and arrivals from its international airport, the ability to determine themselves whether they want a link into a high-speed transportation network.”
The Florida network forms part of Lilium’s vision of bringing regional air mobility to locations across the globe. Lake Nona is situated near Orlando International Airport, the origination site of more than half of the region’s 75 million annual visitors, with a robust economy and infrastructure ready to support the US launch of electric air mobility.
The community is also home to BBA Aviation/Signature Flight Support and SimCom Aviation Training, which recently announced the creation of its new global headquarters that will train approximately 10,000 pilots each year.
Commenting on this partnership, City of Orlando Mayor, Buddy Dyer, said: “For this new technology to truly reshape the transportation ecosystem and benefit Orlando residents long-term, it is going to take a true partnership between cities, developers and transportation operators. We have been focused on finding the right partners to be a global leader in the advanced air mobility space.
“I’m thrilled that our progressive and collaborative environment has created an opportunity for this unique partnership between the City of Orlando, Lilium and Lake Nona to invest in the expansion of safe, efficient and environmentally friendly transportation options throughout one of the fastest-growing regions in the country.”
Lilium and Tavistock have together created a breakthrough vertiport architecture for its hub location that is both functional and aesthetically unique and resembles the iconic art within Lake Nona.
A variety of standardised vertiport designs will allow flexibility so that sites can be uniquely assembled or incorporated into existing transport structures in both urban and suburban developments. These designs provide optionality for metropolitan landscapes with the ability for offsite pre-construction that reduce costs and accelerate development.
Discussing the partnership, Tavistock Managing Director Ben Weaver said: “We are delighted to partner with Lilium to create the first US network of vertiports and to launch within Lake Nona’s living lab allowing unrivaled connectivity unlike anything developed in the country to date.
“This partnership and network launch highlight our community’s passion and commitment to groundbreaking partnerships and new technologies that sets us apart as a city of the future. Lilium’s core mission of transport which not only supports bringing the region together, but also provides a solution to environmental issues, is incredibly impressive.”
The vertiport locations are subject to approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) and other regulatory agencies. The Lilium jet is under certification from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the FAA and will operate under existing regulatory frameworks.