Aircraft

The six Skyport designs that could provide the launchpad for Uber's flying taxis

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The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The Uber Sky Tower is the result of a collaboration between firms Pickard Chilton and ARUP
Pickhard Chilton
The Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is designed to handle 1,000 five-seater vehicle arrivals and departures every hour
Pickhard Chilton
The modular Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is extendable and can be put together vertically and horizontally
Pickhard Chilton
The modular Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is extendable and can be put together vertically and horizontally
Pickhard Chilton
The Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is designed to handle 1,000 five-seater vehicle arrivals and departures every hour
Pickhard Chilton
The Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is designed to handle 1,000 five-seater vehicle arrivals and departures every hour
Pickhard Chilton
The Uber Sky Tower is the result of a collaboration between firms Pickard Chilton and ARUP
Pickhard Chilton
This Skyport concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour
BOKAPowell
BOKAPowell says its Skyport concept could get folks from one of Uber’s cars on the ground into one of its VTOL aircraft within three minutes
BOKAPowell
This Skyport concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour
BOKAPowell
BOKAPowell says its Skyport concept could get folks from one of Uber’s cars on the ground into one of its VTOL aircraft within three minutes
BOKAPowell
This Skyport concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour
BOKAPowell
BOKAPowell says its Skyport concept could get folks from one of Uber’s cars on the ground into one of its VTOL aircraft within three minutes
BOKAPowell
This Skyport concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour
BOKAPowell
The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The Skyport imagined by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would sit over the top of an existing parking garage in LA
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The Skyport imagined by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would sit over the top of an existing parking garage in LA
Humphreys & Partners Architects
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming is to make use of a wire-guided robot that rotates the aircraft on the launchpad, positioning it for landing, loading, charging and taking off
Gannett Fleming
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming is to make use of a wire-guided robot that rotates the aircraft on the launchpad, positioning it for landing, loading, charging and taking off
Gannett Fleming
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming would be modular and able to be constructed both on top of and in between existing buildings
Gannett Fleming
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming would be modular and able to be constructed both on top of and in between existing buildings
Gannett Fleming
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming would be modular and able to be constructed both on top of and in between existing buildings
Gannett Fleming
The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming is to make use of a wire-guided robot that rotates the aircraft on the launchpad, positioning it for landing, loading, charging and taking off
Gannett Fleming
Atlanta’s architecture firm Beck has designed a Skyport also inspired by the beehive, and says, much like bees, electric VTOL aircraft will buzz in and out of “The Hive” in a “never ending cycle of activity"
Beck
The flexible design of Beck's beehive-inspired Skyport means it can be scaled up by simply adding more hexes as the service gains popularity, just as a bee scales up its hive
Beck
The flexible design of Beck's beehive-inspired Skyport means it can be scaled up by simply adding more hexes as the service gains popularity, just as a bee scales up its hive
Beck
The flexible design of Beck's beehive-inspired Skyport means it can be scaled up by simply adding more hexes as the service gains popularity, just as a bee scales up its hive
Beck
Atlanta’s architecture firm Beck has designed a Skyport also inspired by the beehive, and says, much like bees, electric VTOL aircraft will buzz in and out of “The Hive” in a “never ending cycle of activity"
Beck
The Skyport concept designed by architecture firm Corgan would be equipped to handle up to 1,000 electric VTOLs per hour
Corgan
The Skyport concept dreamt up by architecture firm Corgan would be a modular system so it can be adapted to different cityscapes
Corgan
The Skyport concept dreamt up by architecture firm Corgan would be a modular system so it can be adapted to different cityscapes
Corgan
The Skyport concept designed by architecture firm Corgan would be equipped to handle up to 1,000 electric VTOLs per hour
Corgan
The Skyport concept dreamt up by architecture firm Corgan would be a modular system so it can be adapted to different cityscapes
Corgan
View gallery - 36 images

One of the more fanciful aspects of Uber's already pretty fanciful flying taxi service is the concept of Skyports. Like airports and train stations, these terminals would be used as a base for electric aircraft to stay charged up and for passengers to hop on and off. Here's a look at six finalist concepts dreamt up by architects collaborating with Uber on the idea.

Uber first floated the idea of taking its transportation services skyward in a 2016 white paper. The Uber Elevate service would use vertical takeoff and landing aircraft to ferry people around busy urban centers. With a range of up to 60 mi (96 km), the aircraft would move between Skyports stationed around cities, getting passengers where they need to go and swapping batteries or charging up at the same time.

At its Uber Elevate conference in LA this week, the company shared a few concepts of what the vehicles could look like, and it has now done the same for the Skyports themselves. These are the results of an invitation-based design competition held by Uber, and provide a thought-provoking, and let's face it, pretty audacious idea of what a future filled with flying taxis could look like.

Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARUP

The Uber Sky Tower, by Pickard Chilton and ARU, is designed to handle 1,000 five-seater vehicle arrivals and departures every hour
Pickhard Chilton

The Uber Sky Tower is the result of a collaboration between firms Pickard Chilton and ARUP, who stress that, while conceptual, it is "not science fiction" and is based on solid research. The modular structure is extendable, can be put together vertically or horizontally, and is designed to handle 1,000 five-seater vehicle arrivals and departures every hour.

eVTOL Aircraft Skyport, by BOKAPowell

This Skyport concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour
BOKAPowell

This concept by US firm BOKAPowell features six landing pads and is also designed to handle 1,000 vehicle landings and take-offs every hour, which it equates to between 2,000 and 4,000 passengers. It says it can get folks from one of Uber's cars on the ground into one of its VTOL aircraft within three minutes.

Skyport, by Humphreys & Partners Architects

The Skyport imagined by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would sit over the top of an existing parking garage in LA
Humphreys & Partners Architects

Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects has gotten a little more specific with its concept, which actually includes two types of Skyport. One is imagined to sit over the top of an existing parking garage in downtown LA, with its design able to be easily replicated for other locations around the city.

The beehive-inspired Mega Skyport by Dallas-based architecture firm Humphreys & Partners Architects would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces
Humphreys & Partners Architects

The other is a beehive-inspired Mega Skyport that would be a mixed-use development containing offices and retail spaces. Its facade could also be configurable to blend in with the surroundings.

Skyport by Gannett Fleming

The Skyport proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming is to make use of a wire-guided robot that rotates the aircraft on the launchpad, positioning it for landing, loading, charging and taking off
Gannett Fleming

The solution proposed by American engineering firm Gannett Fleming is to make use of a wire-guided robot that rotates the aircraft on the launchpad, positioning it for landing, loading, charging and taking off. The design is also modular and can be constructed both on top of and in between existing buildings.

The Hive, by Beck

The flexible design of Beck's beehive-inspired Skyport means it can be scaled up by simply adding more hexes as the service gains popularity, just as a bee scales up its hive
Beck

The approach from Atlanta's Beck is also inspired by the beehive, and its designers say, much like bees, electric VTOL aircraft will buzz in and out of "The Hive" in a "never ending cycle of activity." The flexible design means it can be scaled up by simply adding more hexes as the service gains popularity, just as a bee scales up its hive. The firm says the facility could handle more than 1,000 landings and takeoffs per hour.

Mega Skyport, by Corgan

The Skyport concept dreamt up by architecture firm Corgan would be a modular system so it can be adapted to different cityscapes
Corgan

Again, the Skyport concept designed by architecture firm Corgan would be equipped to handle up to 1,000 electric VTOLs per hour and be a modular system so it can be adapted to different cityscapes. It consists of a connection plaza module for passenger transfers, a bridge module for foot traffic over highways, the station module itself and then the flight deck module.

To see more angles of these futuristic transportation hubs, have a flick through our gallery.

Sources: Pickard Chilton, BOKAPowell, Humphreys & Partners Architects, Gannett Fleming, Beck, Corgan

View gallery - 36 images
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6 comments
Daishi
These are cool looking. It would be cool to see someone bring some of these designs into a video game.
Graeme S
Hi Daishi, maybe you have got it right, the only places these designs could function would be in a video game.
The stated figures of take off and landing are in the realm of cartoon fantasy, and if these figures are so way off what does that tell you about the entire concept.
I am a helicopter pilot and know the limitations of loading people off then new people on and getting into their seats and buckling up it simply cannot be done in the stated time, and that's not even thinking about flight clearance and incoming traffic, the weather etc etc. totally not going to happen
ArdisLille
Hey, aren't we learning right now that we don't HAVE to be traveling all over the place? Besides, because humans are involved, there will be crashes. We'll need a new kind of umbrella, that's for sure. ("Car Crashes in the Sky" sounds like a good title for a song.)
ljaques
I like the H&PA Mega Skyport the best. There are tougher beams and fewer fragile objects directly in line of a potential crash, but it also has the most wholistic look. NOTE: I would truly hate to live within a mile of any one of those.
Nelson Hyde Chick
Flying taxis are gong to make city life just that much louder, thus more unbearable! The poor will suffer the noise so the rich can fly over them in comfort.
Jeff7
Love Graeme’s comment. And I’m thinking how do you stop people walking the wrong way into some spinning props or off the edge - if you’ve ever watched passengers at a small airport on the tarmac - scary.