May 22, 2026
Kazakhstan
has taken another step toward the transportation of the future.
Alatau
City has conducted its first technical test flights of an eVTOL air taxi—an
electric air vehicle already being hailed as a new era in urban mobility,
according to DKNews.kz.
And
while such technologies seemed like a scene from a science fiction movie just a
short while ago, they are now being tested right outside Almaty.
The
tests were attended by Talgat Lastayev, Deputy Minister of Transport of
Kazakhstan; Michael Daniel, Head of the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan;
as well as representatives from Alatau Advance Air Group Ltd (AAAG) and
AutoFlight.
What
is an air taxi and why is the whole world talking about it?
eVTOL
stands for electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. Simply put, it’s a
hybrid of a drone, a helicopter, and a car. They don’t require long runways,
run on electricity, and are designed for fast flights within cities and between
regions.
According
to the developers, air taxis are capable of:
Against
the backdrop of constant traffic jams in major cities, the idea of “flying”
across the city in 10–15 minutes no longer seems like science fiction.
Kazakhstan
is drafting laws for flying taxis
Most
importantly, the project goes beyond a mere demonstration. The Ministry of
Transport of Kazakhstan has already prepared a package of legislative
amendments that will create the legal framework for air taxi operations and the
development of urban air mobility.
Work
on the documents has been underway for nearly a year in collaboration with
companies involved in implementing the technology. The amendments have now
passed the approval stages and are under discussion. Their adoption is expected
in the near future.
In
fact, Kazakhstan could become one of the first countries in the region to
establish comprehensive regulations for this new type of air transport.
Read
more: https://dknews.kz/ru/dk-avto/393606-v-alatau-city-podnyali-v-nebo-pervoe-aerotaksi