The New York City Economic Development Corporation is preparing two existing heliports in Manhattan for air taxi operations, which could begin as soon as this year. The NYCEDC requires operators of city-owned heliports at East 34th Street, along the East River, and the Downtown Skyport near Wall Street in lower Manhattan, to “complete the build-out of electrification infrastructure requirements” within one year of Federal Aviation Administration certification that will enable commercial air taxi operations, according to an NYCEDC spokesperson. Getting the vertiports ready will involve working with air taxi operators, local utility company Con Edison and existing helicopter operations, VertiPorts by Atlantic CEO Kevin Cox told Smart Cities Dive. But that won’t hold up initial flight operations. “We do anticipate [eVTOL] aircraft being operated in a few sites by the end of the year,” he said. The company, which manages the East 34th Street heliport, also works with locations in California and Florida, Cox said. Vertiports are specialized areas for vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, according to the FAA. A full build-out would include assessing what each facility can accommodate in terms of charging infrastructure, bringing in the necessary electrical power and providing two different charging systems for operators to use, Cox explained. Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation intend to begin operations this year under the FAA’s eVTOL Integration Pilot Program. The program selected eight locations in six states, including New York and New Jersey. Other cities, in the U.S. and internationally, want to learn more about air taxi programs, Cox said. “There is a growing understanding of what and truly how transformational these aircraft can be to communities,” he said. He sees the FAA’s program as a “tipping point,” and those cities that are getting involved now “will be the first beneficiaries of these aircraft,” he said. Cox said