“…Japan Airlines (JAL) could purchase or lease up to 100 Vertical Aerospace VA-X4 eVTOL air taxis from aircraft leasing company Avolon under a strategic partnership announced this week.

The deal between JAL and Avolon’s investment and innovation affiliate, Avolon-e, gives JAL the right to purchase or lease up to 50 VA-X4 eVTOL aircraft from Avolon, with the option to purchase or lease up to 50 additional units.

JAL and Avolon also plan to work together to identify local partners and customers, plus infrastructure and certification requirements, on the way to introducing one of the world’s first eVTOL ridesharing businesses in Japan.

“This latest long-term partnership with JAL aligns us with one of Japan’s leading airlines on their journey to sustainability and to decarbonizing air transport,” Avolon CEO Dómhnal Slattery stated in a press release.

Bristol-based Vertical Aerospace is planning initial certification of the five-seat, winged VA-X4 with the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority by 2024, with validation shortly thereafter by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

According to Slattery, “We believe JAL’s multi-decade experience will prove invaluable as Vertical seeks type certificate validation with the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau, demonstrating that the VA-X4 will be a global eVTOL, unconstrained by borders…”