Urban Air Mobility: Safety Challenges

Abstract

Aviation industry has increased its potential in the last 100 years. From the first steps whereas aviation 1.0 can be defined as the period between the first powered flight (1903) and the advent of the first commercial airliner that was operated on a scheduled international route, the Airco DH.16 (1919) between London and Paris, humanity has faced with the (r)evolution which goes by the many names of flying cars, air taxis, personal air vehicles (PAVs), electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOLs) vehicles, and finally, Urban Air Mobility. Therefore, the concept of safety and its evolution has been changed for many times. Those changes are influenced by different approaches which roughly align with eras of activities in the aviation science and practice. Main approaches, by the time of occurrence, are: technical era (from early 1900s until late 1960s), human factors era (from early 1970s), organizational era (from mid 1990s) and total system era (from the beginning of the 21st century). Compounding evolution of technology and development in aviation industry and safety treats and aspects, this paper provides overall analysis of creating dominant safety management principles in aviation industry. Moreover, paper considers aircraft accidents caused by flight crew errors since it could be the main problem in urban air mobility safety issues. The final part is dedicated to the States role in performing aviation safety and challenges they are faced with. The purpose of the paper is to provide comprehensive platform for safety analysis within the new concept of urban air mobility.