Cooperation on Shared Use of Drone and AAM Aircraft Performance and Reliability Evaluation Infrastructure and Development of Korea’s AAM Industry Ecosystem
High-speed eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft developer Airbility (CEOs Lee Jin-mo and Ryu Taekyu) announced on the 25th that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the AAM & Future Mobility Safety Research Center of the Korea Automotive Technology Institute (KATECH), led by Center Director Jeon Kwang-gi, to cooperate in research and development in the drone and advanced air mobility (AAM) sectors. The agreement was signed at the DSK 2026 (Drone Show Korea 2026), the largest drone and security exhibition in Korea, where Airbility is participating.
Founded in 2023, Airbility is a startup specializing in the development of high-speed AI-powered eVTOL aircraft. The company’s proprietary tilt-duct propulsion system enables both vertical takeoff and landing and high-speed cruising. Airbility has developed and is mass-producing aircraft such as the AB-U10 (180 km/h) and AB-U60 (200 km/h), providing mission-oriented solutions tailored for military, security, and public safety applications, including DFR (Drone as First Responder) for emergency response and counter-drone (Counter-UAS) operations.
KATECH is a government-designated specialized research institute in automotive and mobility manufacturing technologies. Its AAM & Future Mobility Safety Research Center possesses advanced research capabilities for evaluating the performance, safety, and reliability of AAM aircraft and core components. In particular, in 2024 the institute was selected for the “Green UAM-AAV Core Component Test and Evaluation Infrastructure Development” project led by the Korea Aerospace Administration. Through this project, KATECH plans to build key infrastructure in Seosan, Chungcheongnam-do—including a vertiport, integrated testing facility, flight performance testing facility, and hydrogen testing facility—along with six types of evaluation equipment to test the performance, safety, and reliability of hydrogen-electric propulsion AAM aircraft and components. The facilities are scheduled for completion by the end of 2026 and are expected to support the global competitiveness of Korea’s AAM industry.
Under the agreement, the two organizations will jointly utilize research infrastructure for evaluating the performance and reliability of AAM core components and aircraft. They will also actively cooperate in areas such as new drone and AAM product development, technical support, regular information exchange, and co-hosting related events.
Lee Jin-mo, CEO of Airbility, stated,
“By combining KATECH’s proven evaluation infrastructure with our high-speed tilt-duct eVTOL technology, we aim to make a meaningful contribution to the development of Korea’s AAM industry ecosystem.”