MOVING ON UP

Their name doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, but electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft look as if they’re really about to become a part of our lives. Thank goodness we can at least call them eVTOL (“eeh-vee-tohl”) for short, though marketing departments may well want to come up with something catchier before these enter into service. The reality is that whatever they’re called, they promise a paradigm shift in how we get around – from the densest of cities to remote rural areas and everywhere in between. And they’re going to do so in a way that’s sustainable and relatively affordable. At least if all goes well in the next few years.

The concept of a small, electric helicopterlike flying pod has been around for some time now, but it’s only in the past year or so that it has begun to seem truly realistic. That’s because development has progressed enough,