Bluenest by Globalvia announced this week, it is collaborating with Guanacaste Airport (VINCI Airports) and Reserva Conchal to bring Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) to Costa Rica, reports a press release.
The partnership organised a demonstration flight at Guanacaste of an eVTOL by flying an EHang 216‑S AAV. The autonomous aircraft took off from the heliport located in Reserva Conchal and flew over a nearby golf course, coastal area, sea and large resort area, before it landed back at the takeoff point.
This trial flight “makes Costa Rica the pioneer country in Latin America in terms of AAM,” says the release. “It is the first step of a more ambitious and common objective: promoting sustainability and innovation in Costa Rica, by bringing eVTOLs to the country.” This was possible due to the “collaboration and coordination with the inspectors of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation of Costa Rica in supervising the operation with the different participating actors.”
Fernando Vallejo Lázaro, Director of Innovation, IT and Sustainability at Globalvia, remarked, “Sustainability and innovation are the two fundamental pillars that govern Globalvia’s strategy and AAM brings together both qualities. Costa Rica is the perfect place to develop this future mobility.”
The Team Involved with the EHang 216‑S Demonstration Flight
As part of this strategy, the partnership wishes to showcase AAM and the benefits it brings to society and the environment.
These include:
- Zero emissions of CO2 and other particles, reducing pollution as it is an eco- sustainable transportation system.
- Low noise and turbulence levels.
- Connectivity and socio-economic development in rural and mountainous areas, islands, or coastal areas and reduction in traffic density without the
need to deploy expensive land infrastructure.
- Versatility, regional and urban transportation, air taxi, airport transportation, emergency services and tourist routes, among other uses.
The partnership has also presented the specific use cases proposed for Costa Rica, which range from tourist routes with panoramic views to faster transfers from the airport to the country’s centre or urgent delivery of medicines to remote areas.
Additionally, what the travel experience would be like for someone who wants to travel from one end of the country to the other, representing the phases that the user would go through, including boarding the aircraft and landing at the destination.
César Jaramillo, General Manager of Guanacaste Airport, commented, “This project meets both the sustainability and development objectives of the Guanacaste region and the VINCI Airports roadmap to decarbonise aviation and promote innovation in each platform.”
José Ignacio Rodríguez, Manager of Bluenest by Globalvia, added, “Our first validations of vertiports outside of Spain, with the support of the DGAC, Westin, and Guanacaste Airport, are a great step for Bluenest and the region, in our common desire to offer safer, more efficient, quieter and sustainable mobility to visitors and residents.”
Background
Globalvia is a leading Spanish company in the management of transport infrastructure concessions and mobility services of 12 countries. Projects involve highways, high speed railways and the management of Go-Ahead, the largest bus and train operator in the UK. Bluenest is the AAM arm of Globalvia. Its objective is to be a key player within the Urban Air Mobility revolution, especially infrastructure.
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