ACI EUROPE extends its Regular Membership to welcome Advanced Air Mobility stakeholders

Vertiports will now be incorporated in the scope of ACI EUROPE Regular Membership, which was previously reserved for airports and aerodromes.

This groundbreaking change – the first such development within the Airports Council International confederation – reflects the strategic positioning of the association and ensures its relevance in the context of the fast development of new forms of air mobility in Europe.

Extending membership rights to Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) infrastructure operators positions ACI Europe at the forefront of this new paradigm for aviation, which will offer new opportunities for feeding traffic between airports, cities and regions – and a highly complementary role as a hub for low-carbon traffic and mobility.

The association laid grounds for this development in July 2022, by welcoming its first dedicated vertiport operator member – Urban-Air Port. Back then the company joined as World Business Partner on the understanding that it could ultimately qualify as regular member.

At the same time, to better scope and prepare for the advent of full-scale Advanced Air Mobility operation, ACI EUROPE released another instalment in the thought leadership series of AAM-themed discussion papers. The new paper on Ground Operations & Passenger Experience analyses the key challenges faced by the emerging AAM industry, particularly in the operation of vertiports for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The rapid development of AAM presents operational hurdles that extend beyond aircraft design and vertiport infrastructure.

Download the Discussion Paper here.