South Korea Moves Full Speed Ahead on Advanced Air Mobility: PLANA, Hi-Air Ink Deal for 30 AAM Aircraft

In South Korea, urban air mobility is getting real – and the country is taking a leading position in development, manufacture, and deployment.  This week, Korean manufacturer PLANA signs LOI to supply commercial air carrier Hi-Air with 30 AAM aircraft.

by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M. Crosby

Hybrid AAM eVTOL developer PLANA announced its signing of a LOI and MOU with South Korean commercial air carrier Hi-Air to supply 30 AAM aircraft. The LOI will see PLANA supply its CP-01 hybrid-electric AAM aircraft to Hi-Air from 2030, with the first 10 aircraft to be delivered in 2031 and the remaining 20 to be delivered later. Last year, PLANA also signed LOIs with Ghenus Air in the United States and SkyTaxi in Japan, for the supply of 20 and 50 aircraft, respectively.

Founded in 2019, Hi-Air is South Korea’s leading small-scale air operator license holder for small-scale air transport services. The company currently conducts flights to Gimpo, Muan, Suncheon, and Jeju. Last year, it became South Korea’s first commercial air carrier to reach 500,000 cumulative passengers, and it more recently launched a new route between Muan and Kitakyushu, Japan.

The MOU will see PLANA and Hi-Air partner for the joint development of AAM-based business models for passenger and cargo transportation, with the two companies anticipating the creation of synergies through the combination of their respective areas of expertise.

“We are excited to partner with Hi-Air, a leading small-scale air operator in South Korea,” said PLANA CPO Jinmo Lee. “This partnership will help us to strengthen our position in the AAM market and contribute to the development of the South Korean air mobility industry.”

“We are confident that this partnership will help us pioneer a new era of air mobility in South Korea,” said Hi-Air CEO Joseph Kim. “We will combine PLANA’s technology and Hi-Air’s expertise to create a new air mobility market.”

Read more:

• Altitude Angel, Mopiens Partner on UTM in South Korea
• FAA Announces US and Korea Will Partner on Advanced Air Mobility Certification, Operations
• S. Korea Gets Ready for Urban Air Mobility: Flight Simulators, Scale Models and More on Display at Smart Geo Expo
• Urban Air Mobility in Korea: Volocopter Conducts First Crewed Public Air Taxi Flight
• A Model of Korea: the Ambitious Project to Make a Digital Twin of a Country

Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.