Wisk & Airservices Australia partner to bring autonomous air taxi networks into Australia

Wisk Aero, an air mobility company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Airservices Australia, a government-owned organization that provides air traffic management and associated services in Australia. This MoU lays the foundation for incorporating safe, autonomous air taxi travel into Australia’s airspace.

Wisk hopes Australia will be a key market and important for its testing and evaluation programme. In 2022, Wisk established an MoU with the Council of Mayors (SEQ), Australia’s largest regional local government advocacy organization, and most recently, Wisk expanded its partnership with Skyports Infrastructure to identify an Entry-into-Service (EIS) network for Wisk’s autonomous aircraft ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Wisk Australia Pty Ltd has also recently been established to lead the EIS of Wisk in Australia and will lead the engagement with Airservices under this MoU.

The agreement with Airservices Australia underscores Wisk’s commitment to the region and ensures that critical airspace integration systems will be established before Wisk enters the market. Specifically, the MoU establishes a framework for:

Evaluating initiatives that will incorporate autonomous air mobility networks into Australia,

Exploring how advanced air mobility, and in particular uncrewed, remotely supervised aircraft can be integrated into the Australian national airspace,

Providing a forum for discussion on challenges and opportunities for development by identifying potential projects, and

Collaborating and knowledge-sharing activities to improve practices related to autonomous air mobility networks.

Activities expected to be conducted under this MoU also include the workshops, and simulations to understand how AAM systems and Airservices systems will integrate into the national airspace.

“Australia has a history of aviation innovation and a vision for the future that includes advanced air mobility,” said Catherine MacGowan, Wisk’s VP of APAC and Air Operations. “We’re grateful to share that vision with Airservices, and to contribute to an air traffic system that meets the needs of AAM services so we can bring safe, efficient air travel to communities in this region.”

The MoU benefits from Airservices' leadership in airspace reform, including their plans to establish a Flight Information Management System (FIMS). The development of a FIMS is critical for enhancing safety and for integrating AAM into a fully coordinated and seamless airspace. This integrated airspace approach is essential for ensuring the safe and efficient operation of all users, both traditional and emerging.

Airservices Australia is taking a leading role in transforming airspace management to accommodate the future of aviation, including AAM. Wisk Australia will collaborate closely with Airservices to explore airspace procedures for autonomous aircraft, digital flight approvals, and time and trajectory-based operations, as well as how these procedures will operate within newly established vertiport environments. Together, this MoU aims to set standards for the safe and efficient integration of AAM into the national airspace system.

“The mutual benefit of this knowledge-sharing arrangement is it will help both organizations better understand industry needs and challenges, and collaborate on strategies to ensure the safe and sustainable use of Australian airspace,” said Rob Sharp, Interim Chief Executive Officer of Airservices Australia.