Why Flying Taxis Need Special Airports (And Nobody Has Built Them Yet)

Here’s something everyone forgets about flying taxis: they need somewhere to land. Joby has a flying taxi. Archer has a flying taxi. Lilium has a flying taxi. But where do these aircraft land? That’s the question nobody answers.

The answer is: vertiports.

A vertiport is like an airport, but much smaller. It’s where flying taxis take off and land. It’s where passengers get on and off. It’s the whole infrastructure that nobody is building. And that’s a huge problem.

What Exactly Is A Vertiport?

Let me explain what a vertiport actually means. A vertiport is a landing pad for flying taxis. It’s not a runway. It’s a small, vertical space where aircraft take off straight up and land straight down.

Think of it like a parking garage for flying taxis. But on top of a building. Or in the city. Or at an airport.

Here’s what a vertiport has:

• A landing pad (like a helicopter pad)
• Charging stations (flying taxis have batteries)
• Passenger waiting areas
• Maintenance facilities
• Safety systems
• Air traffic control

Here’s how big a vertiport is:

A single vertiport might be the size of a parking lot. Maybe 100 feet by 100 feet. Not huge. But not tiny either.

A big vertiport might handle 50-100 flying taxi flights per day. That requires multiple landing pads, charging stations, and safety equipment.

Why Are Vertiports So Important?

Flying taxis don’t fly themselves. Joby’s aircraft needs to land somewhere. Archer’s aircraft needs to land somewhere. If there’s no place to land, there’s no business.

Here’s the reality: vertiports are the missing piece nobody talks about.

Everyone focuses on the aircraft. “Will the aircraft work? When will it launch? How much does it cost?”

Nobody asks: “Where will it land?”

This is the infrastructure problem. Infrastructure doesn’t get attention. Infrastructure doesn’t get headlines. But infrastructure decides whether flying taxis actually work.

The Real Costs: Building A Vertiport

Building a vertiport is expensive. A single vertiport costs $30 million to $100 million. Some estimates are even higher.

Here’s what you need to build:

Landing pads: $5-10 million (structural engineering, safety systems, maintenance)

Charging infrastructure: $10-20 million (electrical systems, battery charging, power management)

Passenger facilities: $5-15 million (terminals, waiting areas, bathrooms, security)

Maintenance facilities: $5-10 million (repair shops, testing areas, storage)

Air traffic control: $2-5 million (radar, communication systems, safety equipment)

Land acquisition: $10-50 million (very expensive in cities where you need vertiports)

Regulatory compliance: $2-5 million (getting approvals, safety certifications)

Total: $40-115 million per vertiport.

Now imagine you need 20-30 vertiports across a city. That’s $800 million to $3.5 billion in infrastructure.

Who pays for that? That’s the big question.

The Infrastructure Problem: Who Builds Vertiports?

Flying taxi companies (Joby, Archer, Lilium) don’t want to build vertiports.

Why? Because it costs too much. Because it takes too long. Because they have limited capital.

Joby raised $976 million total. Building 20-30 vertiports would cost $800 million to $3.5 billion. That’s more than Joby’s entire funding.

So who builds vertiports?

Real estate companies might build them (make money from property)

Airlines might build them (add new revenue stream)

City governments might build them (public transportation)

Airport operators might build them (expand their business)

Nobody knows for sure. This is why the infrastructure problem is so big.

Real World Example: Dubai Vertiport

The best vertiport example is Dubai.

Joby is launching flying taxi service in Dubai in 2026. Dubai is building a vertiport for Joby.

Dubai’s vertiport:

Location: Near Burj Khalifa (downtown Dubai)
Cost: Estimated $50-100 million
Capacity: 200-300 flights per day (when fully operational)
Opening: 2026

Dubai can afford it. Dubai wants it. Dubai is a rich city with vision.

But most cities are not Dubai.

Most cities are New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris. These cities struggle to build basic infrastructure (roads, subway, buses). Building vertiports will be very difficult.

The Timeline Problem: Vertiports Take Time

Building vertiports takes years.

Here’s a realistic timeline:

Year 1: Government approves location, environmental review
Year 2: Land acquisition, design, permitting
Year 3: Construction begins
Year 4: Construction continues
Year 5: Construction finishes, testing, final approvals
Year 6: Opens to public

So if you want to launch flying taxis in 2027, you need vertiports done by 2026. That’s impossible in most cities.

This is why Dubai is winning. Dubai started planning vertiports in 2021-2022. Dubai will have vertiports ready by 2026.

Dubai Vertiport (Image Credit: Skyports)

Most cities started planning in 2024-2025 or haven’t started at all.

Timeline problem: Vertiports take 5-6 years to build. Flying taxi companies want to launch in 2026-2028. The timing doesn’t match.

Where Will Vertiports Actually Be Built?

Vertiports will be built in specific places. Not everywhere.

Most likely locations:

Airports

• Make sense (existing infrastructure)
• Connect flying taxis to airplanes
• Easy to add security, facilities
• Airports are open to new technology

Downtown business districts

• High passenger demand
• Easy to get permits (business areas)
• Expensive land but high revenue potential
• Cities want them here

Train stations

• Connect flying taxis to trains
• Existing transportation hub
• Good location for connecting passengers
• Some cities planning this

Hotels and shopping centers

• Private companies want to build them
• Make money from passengers
• Expensive but profitable
• Luxury locations

Universities and hospitals

• Specialized use (staff, emergency transport)
• Dedicated facilities
• Private property (easier permits)
• Limited public use

Unlikely locations:

• Suburbs (no demand, too spread out)
• Industrial areas (no passengers)
• Rural areas (no demand)
• Residential neighborhoods (noise, safety concerns)

The Noise Problem: Are Vertiports Too Loud?

Flying taxis are electric, so they’re quieter than helicopters. But they’re still loud.

Joby’s aircraft: 70-75 decibels (like a vacuum cleaner)
Helicopter: 85-90 decibels (very loud)

So flying taxis are quieter. But not silent.

If you have 200 flights per day in a city, that’s constant noise from morning to night.

Noise concerns:

Residential areas: Won’t allow vertiports (residents complain)
Downtown areas: Acceptable (already noisy)
Airports: No problem (already loud)
Hospitals: Problems (patients need quiet)

This is why vertiports go downtown or at airports. Not in quiet neighborhoods.

The Safety Question: Are Vertiports Safe?

Yes, vertiports can be safe. But they need:

Strict safety standards

• Vertical aircraft need special training
• Pilots need certifications
• Regular inspections required

Security systems

• Air traffic control to prevent collisions
• Automated landing systems
• Emergency procedures
• Weather monitoring

Emergency response

• Fire trucks on standby
• Medical teams nearby
• Evacuation procedures
• Insurance coverage

Dubai is building safety into their vertiport from day one. This is good.

But many cities don’t have these systems yet. They’ll need to build them. That takes time and money.

The Main Problem

Here’s the real infrastructure problem:

Flying taxi companies don’t want to build vertiports. They want to focus on aircraft.

Real estate companies don’t want to build vertiports. Too expensive, too uncertain demand.

City governments don’t want to build vertiports. Too expensive, low priority, risky investment.

Nobody wants to build vertiports. But flying taxis can’t launch without them.

All need vertiports to launch flying taxis. But nobody builds vertiports until they know flying taxis will actually work. But flying taxis can’t work without vertiports.

Dubai solved this by saying: “We want flying taxis. We’ll build the vertiport.” That worked.

But most cities don’t have Dubai’s money or vision.

Timeline For Vertiport Construction

Here’s what will actually happen:

2026: Dubai vertiport opens. Joby launches service.
2027: Maybe 2-3 vertiports in U.S. cities (New York, Los Angeles)
2028: Maybe 5-10 vertiports across U.S. and Europe
2029: Maybe 20-30 vertiports
2030: Maybe 50-100 vertiports globally

This is much slower than flying taxi companies want.

Joby wants to launch everywhere by 2027. But most cities won’t have vertiports until 2028-2030.

The Dubai International Vertiport (DXV) is the first commercial vertiport facility to receive technical design approval from the UAE. © Skyports

Reality: Flying taxis will launch in cities with vertiports (Dubai, maybe NYC, maybe LA). Other cities will wait until vertiports are built.

Who’s Actually Building Vertiports?

Very few companies are building vertiports.

Companies building vertiports:

Urban-Air Port (UK company)

• Building vertiports in UK and Europe
• “Plug and play” vertiports
• Modular design (faster to build)
• Cost: $50-80 million each

Lilium’s vertiport plans

• Building vertiports in Europe
• Partnership with AeroGround
• Ready by 2027-2028
• Multiple locations planned

Joby’s Dubai vertiport

• Partnership with Meraas (Dubai company)
• Custom-built for Dubai market
• First operational vertiport
• Opens 2026

Archer’s vertiport plans

• Discussions with U.S. airports
• Not publicly confirmed yet
• Planning phase

Most companies: No clear vertiport strategy. They’re waiting to see what happens.

The Cost Problem For Cities

Building vertiports costs a lot of money. A city needs 20-30 vertiports to have real flying taxi coverage.

Cost: $800 million to $3.5 billion

For comparison:

NYC subway expansion: $15 billion
LA metro expansion: $5 billion
Chicago expansion: $2 billion

Vertiports are expensive but not impossible. But cities have competing priorities.

Cities usually prioritize:

1. Roads and highways
2. Public transit (buses, trains)
3. Water systems
4. Schools and hospitals
5. Housing

Flying taxi vertiports are last on the list. So they’ll be built slowly.

My Perspective: Amit’s Honest Opinion

Here’s what I really think:

Flying taxis will work technically. Joby, Archer, Lilium will build good aircraft. The technology is solid.

But flying taxis will launch slowly because of vertiports. You can’t fly a taxi without somewhere to land. Obvious, right? But obvious doesn’t mean people are solving it.

Dubai will win first. Dubai is building vertiports now. Joby will launch in Dubai in 2026. That’s real. That’s happening.

U.S. cities will lag behind. New York, Los Angeles, Chicago—these cities are too busy with other problems. They won’t build vertiports fast enough. Flying taxis will launch 2-3 years late in major U.S. cities.

Vertiport companies will be as important as aircraft companies. Urban-Air Port, AeroGround, Meraas (Dubai)—these infrastructure companies will be as valuable as Joby and Archer. Nobody realizes this yet.

My prediction for 2030:

• Dubai: 3-5 operational vertiports, 500+ daily flights
• Europe: 5-10 vertiports, especially in Germany and UK
• U.S.: Maybe 3-5 vertiports (NYC, LA, maybe Miami)
• Rest of world: Very few vertiports

Vertiports will be the limiting factor, not the aircraft. That’s my honest opinion.

The Bottom Line

Flying taxis are coming. That’s certain. But they won’t launch everywhere at once. They will launch where vertiports exist.

Dubai has vertiports. Dubai wins first.

Most cities don’t have vertiports. Those cities wait. That’s the hidden infrastructure challenge. The question nobody asks. The problem that decides when flying taxis actually become real.

Build the aircraft. That’s important. But build the vertiports first. Because aircraft without vertiports go nowhere.

Want To Learn More?

Read our complete eVTOL company guides:

• Joby Aviation: The Flying Taxi Company Backed by Toyota
• Archer Aviation: United Airlines Flying Taxi Partner
• Lilium: The Jet-Powered eVTOL Company
• EHang Holdings: The Company Already Flying Passengers

Also read: eVTOL Funding 2026: How Much Money Did Each Company Raise?

Questions?

Contact Air Taxi Central at contact@airtaxicentral.com or reach Amit at amit@airtaxicentral.com.