Air taxi services are expected to grow from six initial states this year to multiple urban and rural areas by 2030, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Advanced Air Mobility National Strategy. “By 2035, there will be advanced air operations with exciting use cases, including fully autonomous flight,” the DOT predicts.
To date, the focus has been on pilot training and infrastructure investments, such as vertiports and charging stations. The growing industry will also need aviation maintenance personnel with specialized training for high-voltage systems and aircraft software, according to the DOT. It recommends increasing workforce development programs at the K–12 and post-secondary levels.
That’s what the Monterey Bay Economic Partnership in California is doing. Focusing on four rural airports in Watsonville, Marina, Salinas and Hollister, the nonprofit aims to build up the infrastructure and skills needed to support air mobility in the state’s central coast region.
“The critical step here is to make sure that the workforce will be prepared,” MBEP President and CEO Tahra Goraya told Smart Cities Dive. Two major air taxi developers have ties to the region: Joby Aviation is based in Santa Cruz, California, and Archer Aviation got its start in Palo Alto. “The central coast has almost become a national hub of these activities,” she said.
“Certainly, there's a lot of buzz around jobs and the job potential, but we don't quite know what those numbers will quite look like yet,” Goraya said. “Some of our community colleges … are already training for these skills.”
She said MBEP has also engaged with the California State University system, the University of California and the county education offices, which oversee pre-K through 12th grade. “There's a lot of skills and a lot of training that doesn't necessarily require a two-year degree or a four-year degree,” Goraya said.
As advanced air mobility projects take flight, the industry will need to prepare regional airports, according to MBEP. “If regions wait until aircraft are certified to begin building the systems around them, they will be laying the groundwork at the point when they should be ready to move into implementation — leaving little time to align infrastructure, institutions, communities, and investment around emerging operations,” the MBEP said on its website.
“Most general aviation airports don't have this kind of activity, and I think this could certainly be a strong opportunity for airports to generate economic opportunity,” Goraya said.
