SkyDrive Completes First Demonstration Flight in Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan — SkyDrive Inc. (“SkyDrive”), a leading Japanese-based eVTOL aircraft manufacturer, is pleased to announce the successful execution of a series of SKYDRIVE demonstration flights (SkyDrive SD-05) conducted over five days from Tuesday 24 February to Saturday 28 February 2026. The flights, organised in partnership with Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd. and Kanematsu Corporation and taking place at Tokyo Big Sight, a major event venue in Tokyo Bay, marked SkyDrive’s first public flight in Tokyo. The flights were carried out as part of the “Business Model Development Project for eVTOL (Flying Car) Services in Tokyo,” a Tokyo Metropolitan Government project announced in June 2025.
The objective of the flight program is to evaluate the ground and integrated flight operations required to support the future commercialisation of urban eVTOL transport. In light of this, SkyDrive and its various project partners assessed the entire operational chain from pre-flight preparation to take-off, en-route flight, landing, and return of the aircraft to the hangar. With a joint focus on the aircraft and the passenger terminal facilities that will be needed in the future, the project marks a new chapter as the first comprehensive feasibility study on eVTOL operations for the future conducted in Japan.
Terminal infrastructure is being built so that the general public can test and provide feedback on various pre-boarding procedures, including check-in and passenger security screening supported by facial recognition technology. SkyDrive thanks the general public for helping collect the data needed to ensure the smooth operation of future passenger flights. With their cooperation, commercially viable and practically feasible urban eVTOL travel can begin to take shape.
Video: https://youtu.be/lI0tTF3c9Ak
Advancing the Case for Urban eVTOL
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government has developed a roadmap for the adoption of eVTOL infrastructure and services and is actively supporting the industry’s development, recognising the potential of eVTOL aircraft to improve residents’ lives by alleviating traffic congestion and radically transforming the movement of people and goods. Smoother transport and logistics networks will increase the city’s appeal, making it a more attractive destination for visitors and a more comfortable place to live for residents.
Since 2022, Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd. and Kanematsu Corporation have validated various business models and conducted technical verifications to assess the viability of different passenger eVTOL services. These studies, designed to pave the way for air taxi use in and around Tokyo, include potential routes between the Shin-Marunouchi Building rooftop in central Tokyo and destinations along Tokyo Bay.
Flight along these routes by conventional helicopters would show significant time savings of up to more than two-thirds versus road travel, while underscoring the importance of ensuring time savings in pre- and post-trip procedures, including passenger boarding and access to and from the vertiport. In addition, this initial work confirms the unique scenic appeal of these routes, the high likely demand for sightseeing flights, and the importance of business districts and rail hubs as potential vertiport locations.
Following these investigations and feasibility studies, SkyDrive joined the project in 2025, its fourth year. As described above, SkyDrive, together with the project partners, can use this series of demonstration flights to assess aircraft and terminal operations. In collaboration with Skyports, a UK-based leader in vertiport infrastructure, we are seeking volunteers from the general public who can attempt part of the passenger eVTOL journey, including the check-in and security screening supported by facial recognition technology, as part of our efforts to ensure terminal operational effectiveness. Feedback from these activities will give SkyDrive deeper insights into the operational needs and practicality required to ensure successful commercialisation.
Demo Flights Details
The demonstration flights took place from 24–28 February 2026, operating from a dedicated take-off and landing site in a temporary outdoor parking area near the East Wing of Tokyo Big Sight, an iconic Tokyo landmark. The flights featured SKYDRIVE (SkyDrive Model SD-05), the same model flown by SkyDrive at the Osaka Expo 2025 and at the nearby OsakaKo Vertiport. Because the flight path is near busy air corridors approaching Haneda Airport, the demonstration flights also serve as a further opportunity to confirm SkyDrive’s low acoustic footprint.
The aircraft’s flight path began from within a restricted airspace available inside Tokyo Big Sight before extending out to sea. SkyDrive’s ability to take off and land in relatively constrained space is a major advantage in ensuring safe operations from rooftops and from vertiports of a modest size.