The company on Tuesday announced a partnership with California-based vertiport developer and operator Skyway Technologies to install eVTOL hubs in South Florida and Puerto Rico. The partners plan to release more information on locations and routes in those markets in the coming months, with plans to launch service in 2026.

“Our partnership with UrbanLink is advancing the industry towards launching operations in the United States,” said Clifford Cruz, CEO of Skyway.

Similar to a heliport, a vertiport allows an eVTOL aircraft to take off and land vertically, with additional infrastructure for electric charging. In addition to design and operation, Skyway provides vertiport services such as air traffic management and mission planning.

The partnership is UrbanLink’s second in as many months following an agreement with Texas-based Ferrovial Vertiports to build a network of hubs in South Florida and the Los Angeles metro area.

Both collaborations are intended to set the stage for Lilium Jet operations across networks linking the takeoff and landing locations. The sites are also meant to serve “the broader [advanced air mobility (AAM)] industry,” UrbanLink says.

“In order to finance and build the vertiports needed to support the AAM industry, it is crucial to have multiple partners,” said Ed Wegel, who founded UrbanLink earlier this year and serves as chairman. “We are impressed with Skyway’s understanding of our business and their commitment to delivering well-designed, safe, and efficient vertiports in the U.S. and Caribbean.”

The operator is eyeing a 2026 U.S. commercial launch, which is in line with Lilium’s projections for when its flagship Lilium Jet will be ready for service.

The manufacturer is so far the only company to receive certification bases from both the FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for a commercial eVTOL design. It intends to fly on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in the Middle East.

The Lilium Jet is expected to cruise at 162 knots on city-to-city trips spanning 25 to 125 sm (22 to 109 nm). It uses a propulsion system seldom seen on eVTOL designs, with a pair of electric motors feeding 10 independent battery packs that power 36 electric ducted fans embedded in the aircraft’s fixed wings. These allow it to hover and take off vertically like a helicopter, with minimal noise production or impact on cruise performance, Lilium says.

By contrast, manufacturers such as Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation employ tilting rotors and propellers that aid in both vertical and forward flight.

The unique propulsion system underwent initial testing in June ahead of the Lilium Jet’s first crewed flight, expected later this year. The manufacturer began building its first production prototype aircraft, which will be used to validate the design with regulators, in December.

Since partnering in May, Lilium and UrbanLink have moved quickly to target eVTOL jet operations in South Florida—which is poised to be Lilium’s U.S. base of operations—Los Angeles, Southern California, and Puerto Rico. Announcements for additional locations are on the horizon, they said Tuesday.

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The event, called “Mission Possible 15,” is organized by Wings of Rescue and The Sato Project, and is set to liberate 165 dogs and 135 cats from overcrowded municipal animal shelters in Puerto Rico, which typically have a high rate of euthanasia.

During Saturday’s mission, the pets will be loaded onto two chartered Embraer Brasília 120 twin-engine turboprop aircrafts, each flown by a pilot and a copilot, according to Gene Gable, a spokesperson for Wings of Rescue. As a standard EMB 120, the lift will give the animals the ability be able to travel in a fully pressurized and temperature controlled manner, according to the San Diego, California-based nonprofit that conducts large-scale transport of animals in overcrowded shelters or shelters in disaster areas.

Also onboard each flight will be a Wings of Rescue representative and a guest passenger.

“They are configured for cargo from Berry Aviation in Texas,” Gable, told FLYING. “We also regularly fly a Pilatus PC-12, including to Puerto Rico, but as the number of pets on Saturday is so large, the Brasilias are a better choice.” 

• READ MORE: Rescue Dogs and Airplanes

Plans for the mission have been in the works since the beginning of the year, and the schedule was set with an eye on potential weather events in the region.

“Since Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, it has become a standard part of our practice to fly as many animals as we can off the island before peak Atlantic hurricane season, which begins at the end of August,” said Tara Steinberg, spokesperson for The Sato Project, an organization focused on rescuing stray and abused pets in Puerto Rico. 

The Sato Project has rescued more than 6,200 dogs and cats from the island, Steinberg said. “It has been rescuing dogs from the streets of Puerto Rico, vetting and rehabilitating them, and then flying them to New York for 11 years. For the first few years, our dogs flew on commercial flights.” 

A partnership established with Wings of Rescue in 2016, however, elevated transport efforts dramatically, she said.

“This partnership has allowed us to fly even more dogs off the island at once and even lend support to other organizations and animals in need,” Steinberg said. “Since 2016, we have completed 42 missions of privately chartered airplanes packed with rescue animals from Puerto Rico.”

• READ MORE: A Blind Dog Flies Home

Herding Cats and Dogs

The logistics of herding 300 cats and dogs onto airplanes, even chartered ones, requires a lot of coordination. The unsedated dogs and cats are placed in approved, hard travel-safe pet crates, which are loaded into the cargo aircraft.

“Every animal has a certificate from a licensed veterinarian that certifies them healthy to fly, vaccinated, and free of any infectious diseases,” Steinberg said.

The flights from Puerto Rico then land at Million Air FBO at Westchester County Airport (KHPN) in West Harrison, New York. 

"We are told by pilots that the pets are typically very quiet during the flight, but tend to stir and be more vocal during takeoff and landing," Steinberg said. Once in New York, they are processed by an awaiting team, and their circumstances change for the better almost immediately.

The animals are taken out of their crates, secured with a collar, harness, and leash, and transferred to their next step of the journey, which Steinberg described as "either to a foster family, shelter partner, or directly to their new family waiting in the parking lot!"

Want To Adopt or Fly a Rescue Pet?

Anyone interested in adopting a rescued pet may learn more about the process by visiting The SATO Project's website. Pilots interested in volunteer opportunities for rescue flights around the country may learn more by visiting Wings of Rescue's website.

• READ MORE: Hundreds of Pilots To Provide Transport for Women’s Medical Care

The post Airlift Aims To Rescue 300 Abandoned Dogs, Cats appeared first on FLYING Magazine.