Brisbane to Brendale in eight minutes!

Moreton Bay residents are a step closer to the day when we take to the skies - in an air taxi.

It follows the release of a joint paper into Advance Air Mobility (AAM) by the Council of Mayors South East Queensland (COMSEQ) and Wisk Aero.

For more than a decade the California-based company has been working on the design, construction and flying of all-electric, self-flying air taxis.

Last October, Wisk unveiled its Generation 6 air taxi - the world’s first electric, autonomous, four-seat eVTOL (electrical vertical take-off and landing) air taxi for passenger transport.

The opportunities AAM paper includes potential flight times between Brisbane and Moreton Bay Region hubs such as Caboolture (15 minutes), Redcliffe (11 minutes) and Brendale (8 minutes).

Mayor Peter Flannery, pictured with Wisk Aero CEO Brian Yutko, said AAM could help solve the region’s growing population pains.

“We need to be innovative and ambitious if we are going to solve growing congestion issues in our region and improve mobility across South East Queensland by the time the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games come around,” he said.

“According to the opportunities paper, locals could soon be travelling between key business and social hubs like Redcliffe, Caboolture, North Lakes and Brendale in a matter of minutes.

“This is a great opportunity for new and ambitious industries to take off right here in Moreton Bay, which could not only help solve congestion issues, but opens up huge possibilities for jobs, business investment and other opportunities.

“Innovation like this supports our vision for a polycentric city model to have multiple business hubs across the region rather than one singular centre like Sydney and Melbourne which have all become car parks.”

In the joint paper Mr Yusko says: "Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is poised to bring personal and accessible flight to more people.

"Advancements in technology, autonomy, and electric propulsion are creating a wave of inspiring inventions which have the potential to change transport forever — the likes of which haven’t been seen since the invention of the car."

On the COSEQM website Catherine MacGowan, Wisk Asia Pacific Regional Director, added: “Queensland has an incredible opportunity to be at the forefront of AAM.

“A thriving AAM sector will create important economic opportunities and transportation linkages that will help the region develop in a sustainable way.

"We are very excited to continue to work with the Council of Mayors and others to bring our all-electric, self-flying air taxi to South East Queensland.”

Mayor Peter Flannery said road and transport infrastructure would remain critical and he is lobbying the State Government to gazette a corridor for the Bruce Highway Western Alternative “so we all now the route and we can plan around that”.

Wisk Aero and COMSEQ have entered a strategic partnership to collaborate on outreach and events to showcase the benefits of advanced air mobility.

To read the paper in full click here