Brazilian aerospace company Embraer and transport giant Uber announced Tuesday that they had inked an agreement to develop a model of electric planes for urban use, named "Elevate."
In a statement, Embraer said the plane, with vertical takeoff and landing, would enter a testing phase by 2020 with Dallas in the United States and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates as the first two cities to receive it.
According to Embraer, passenger transportation with these new planes could begin in 2023. However, it did not divulge the numbers of the deal.
"The main focus of our work in this initial stage is building a viable ecosystem. We are entering into this project sharing the same vision with Uber in the search for a transport solution mainly for large cities. The demand for this model exists, what is missing is the product," said Antonio Campello, Embraer's director of innovation, in the statement.
The project will be developed at Embraer's base in Florida, with specifics such as the size of the cabins, the number of engines, the speed and the range of the vehicle to be discussed with Uber.
Embraer believes the technology for this radical solution can bring a success.
In the statement, Uber's chief product officer Jeff Holden added: " It's natural for Uber to turn our eyes to the air. Push a button and get a flight."
