In line with the work that I am doing with NASA and the Future Flight Challenge Skybus project I have created a google form as a way of surveying which elements are the most sensitive in terms of selecting a site for a vertiport. This should only take about 5 min and I hope that you are able to access google docs.
Future Flight Challenge - Skybus – Lead: GKN Aerospace with Swanson Aviation Consultancy, Pascall+Watson and the Connected Places Catapult
Skybus is a "system of systems" level evaluation of the operational, technical, and economic feasibility of a new and disruptive multimodal public transport network based on large electric Vertical Take-Off & Landing (eVTOL) vehicles, each capable of carrying between 30 to 50 passengers.
This new transport network could offer a larger, cheaper, and more accessible mobility solution in the most congested urban areas for the benefit of the wider public instead of just high net worth individuals.
The Skybus transport network takes the "Park and Ride" concept into the air for mass transit over extremely congested routes eliminating the 2-Dimensional constraints of current surface transport modes including cars, trains, and buses. This will not only offer direct benefits in reduced travel time at affordable fares but also help reduce the congestion on current ground transport modes thus reducing overall travel time for all passengers travelling on these routes regardless of their mode of transport.
Site Selection Survey Method
“Site selection for infrastructure to support Urban Air Mobility is going to be very difficult given the wide range of issues associated with vertical flight in built up areas. This survey is designed to help prioritise key elements which will then be assessed using a Cross Impact Analysis. This survey will be using a Political, Economic, Social, Technical, Legal, Environmental (PESTLE) and Transportation (T) (PESTLE-T) framework to group the key factors. We ask that you select the key factors that should be given consideration when selecting a site to maximise the chance of securing planning permission for a vertiport.”
As mentioned above I will be doing a cross impact analysis assessment which basically measures each factor in terms of sensitivity against each other. In the survey there are 52 suggested factors and if I did the analysis on all of them I would be asking 2,652 questions which would be rather a lot. Hopefully you can help me narrow it down a bit to make the analysis a bit more focused.
I have enabled you to view the responses so you can see how the survey evolves. I will then put out another survey request via my social media profiles and compare the responses with your response as I feel that you are an educated test group. I will publish the findings when I have a meaningful response.
For more information on the NASA Transformative Vertical Flight Working groups I am participating in follow these links.
TVF Working Group #2: Commercial Intra-city (Short Range) | NASA Aeronautics Research Institute
TVF Working Group #3: Commercial Inter-city (Longer Range) | NASA Aeronautics Research Institute
Regards,
Darrell Swanson
Swanson Aviation Consultancy
