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Milan and Advanced Air Mobility: between roundtable discussion, infrastructure development, and operational reality


Report on the state of Advanced Air Mobility in the Milan area – 2026 update
In recent years, Milan has emerged as one of Europe’s leading hubs for the development of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), with particular focus on the future integration of eVTOL aircraft into urban and airport transport systems.
The project involves a structured ecosystem of industrial, airport, and regulatory stakeholders working progressively toward the creation of the conditions required for future safe and integrated operations.
📌 Milan roundtable: context and function
In the recent discussion dedicated to the development of Advanced Air Mobility, representatives from the European and Italian aviation ecosystem took part, contributing to planning, regulatory, and infrastructure development processes.
Communications from the sector indicate participation from stakeholders belonging to the following categories:
🧩 FULL STAKEHOLDER FRAMEWORK (REAL STRUCTURE)
🏢 1. Airport operators
SEA
airport operators in Northern Italy (including secondary airports involved in network assessments)
👉 Role: infrastructure development, vertiports, airport integration
🧭 2. Regulators and aviation authorities
ENAC
ENAV
EASA
👉 Role: regulation, safety oversight, certification, airspace management
🏛️ 3. Public institutions and local authorities
Lombardy Region
City of Milan
👉 Role: urban planning and territorial integration
🏗️ 4. Infrastructure and urban mobility industry
Skyports
urban mobility and energy service providers
companies involved in smart city infrastructure and electric charging systems
👉 Role: vertiports, infrastructure, urban connectivity
🧪 5. Research and academic system
Politecnico di Milano
aerospace clusters and regional research centers
👉 Role: simulations, U-space studies, traffic modeling
✈️ 6. Aeronautical and global AAM industry
Joby Aviation
Archer Aviation
Volocopter
other international eVTOL and drone manufacturers
👉 Role: aircraft development, certification, future operations
🎯 Real function of the roundtable
This type of meeting does not have direct operational decision-making power, but serves as a mechanism to:
coordinate industry and regulators
assess the real status of AAM development
analyze the gap between technology, infrastructure, and regulation
align roadmaps and timelines
reduce fragmentation among stakeholders
👉 It is a governance and coordination tool, not an operational activation mechanism.
🏗️ Infrastructure development
The development of vertiports in the Milan area is being carried out through partnerships between airport operators and specialized companies.
Infrastructure is:
in advanced planning or development stages
linked to airport and urban nodes
part of a future multimodal mobility network
However:
no commercial eVTOL passenger operations are currently active
⚙️ Operational and regulatory status
The European framework already defines the concept of digital air traffic management (U-space), but full urban-scale implementation is still under development.
Currently:
no fully operational and certified urban eVTOL passenger network exists
eVTOL traffic management remains in experimental or pre-operational phases
full integration between airspace systems and infrastructure is still evolving
✈️ Aircraft certification
Major international manufacturers are currently engaged in EASA/FAA certification processes for commercial eVTOL operations.
As of today:
no eVTOL aircraft has yet achieved full certification for urban passenger operations
certification processes are ongoing and incremental
entry into service depends entirely on the successful completion of regulatory and safety requirements
📊 Nature of the project
✔ infrastructure → advanced development and planning
✔ industry → active and consolidated
✔ regulation → evolving
❌ urban eVTOL operations → not yet active
📌 Conclusion
Milan represents one of Europe’s key laboratories for Advanced Air Mobility.
The system is currently in an intermediate phase in which:
infrastructure is being developed
the regulatory framework is evolving
industry stakeholders are actively engaged
but commercial urban operations are not yet a reality
🧭 Final summary
👉 Ecosystem: real and active
👉 Roundtable: strategic coordination mechanism
👉 Infrastructure: under development
👉 Operational system: not yet complete
👉 eVTOL services: not yet active
If you want, I can also:
�⁠adapt it into a journal-style aerospace editorial (more formal ICAO/ENAC tone)
or �⁠make a strong opinion piece version with sharper critical analysis

Aviation #AdvancedAirMobility #AAM #eVTOL #UrbanAirMobility #Uspace #AirMobility #Aerospace #Innovation #FutureOfTransport #SmartCities #Milan #AviationIndustry
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