Update to an earlier report: This article includes new information about a story we previously covered. Read our earlier report.
Columbus Council approved up to $2.2 million for an electric-aircraft vertiport and charging station at Columbus Airport. Project overseer Andy Hilmes estimates construction will start and finish in 2027.
At its Oct. 27 meeting, the council agreed to sign an intergovernmental agreement with the Columbus Airport Commission for the project. The funding, according to the agreement, will come from the city’s TSPLOST discretionary fund.
The facility is intended for eVTOL aircraft — electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles powered by batteries and designed for short air-taxi trips. Hilmes, executive vice president at Choose Columbus, said the infrastructure would help position Columbus within a broader advanced air mobility network.
Georgia Department of Transportation intermodal director Clement Solomon has described a statewide outlook for the technology. He said advanced air mobility is expected to expand in Georgia over the next 10 to 20 years, carrying both cargo and passengers. Solomon identified medical supplies and organ transport as potential cargo uses.
Vincent Caldwell
News Now Georgia
