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The following story comes up with this interesting piece from Canterbury, New Zealand about 'flying taxis':
Aviation company Zephyr has unveiled Cora, which is designed to be a pilotless air-taxi.
In a quiet corner of Canterbury, a new type of autonomous, electric "flying car" has been secretly tested since October. Its creators hope a flying taxi service could take to the skies in New Zealand within six years.
[...] The vehicle, which has been in development for eight years, can take off and land vertically, much like a helicopter. It is electric-powered and will be flown by self-piloting software – with human oversight from the ground. It has a range of about 100 kilometres and can hit speeds of 150kmh. The prototype can carry two passengers.
The New Zealand trial is seen as an opportunity for the country and Canterbury to establish itself as a hotbed for the research and development of cutting-edge technology, which the Government sees as a key area for growth.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the programme was about "sending the message to the world that our doors are open for people with great ideas who want to turn them into reality". Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel said the project was "a great example of our commitment to be prepared for the future".
[...] Cora is being developed by California-based Kitty Hawk Corporation, which is reportedly funded by Google co-founder Larry Page. The New Zealand operator is called Zephyr Airworks.
[...] Both [Kitty Hawk chief executive Sebastian Thrun and Zephyr Airworks boss Fred Reid] are convinced this new type of vehicle is the future of transport. Reid said the concept would be commonplace "10 or 20 years from now".
[...] Reid said there was "a really good shot of doing this in the relatively short future", and was striving to have limited services operating in New Zealand in the next three to six years.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 14 2018, @11:35PM
The basic idea is essentially the F-35B without wings.
Takeoff and landing are strictly vertical, except for emergency landings. Stall speeds are too high to consider horizontal takeoff and landing to be safe.
In horizontal flight, it's a lifting-body. The jet engine gives enough power to go as fast as an airliner. Control is via the thrust-vectoring engine and via bleed air going out to the side vents.