Water-Based Green Veriport Brings Much-Needed Flexibility to Urban Air Mobility

AutoFlight Aviation Technology recently unveiled and demonstrated its Water-based Green Veriport (WGV): an aircraft carrier-like platform that supports electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) operations rather than fighter jets. The system aims to fill a major gap in urban air mobility infrastructure.

The Veriport, proclaimed to be the ‘world’s first Integrated Sea-Air Low-Altitude Economy Solution,’ works as a mobile operations hub that brings charging, dispatch, and communication systems directly onto rivers, lakes, and coastal zones. It features a deck that doubles as a solar-covered landing pad and an enclosed cabin to serve as a passenger lounge and technical bay. The platform is fully electric and intended to be dropped into place far faster than any land-based vertiport, which tends to get tangled in regulations (and concrete).

For now, at least, AutoFlight’s system supports only a selection of its own eVTOL aircraft, including the “White Shark,” the 2-ton cargo hauler “CarryAll,” and the six-seat passenger aircraft “Prosperity.” These work together to enable point-to-point flights in scenarios where helicopters are too loud, boats are too slow, and infrastructure is too nonexistent. The water-based option also provides a workaround for cities boxed in by density or geography.

The company says the integrated system targets five specific operations. Offshore energy operators can reportedly move people and parts more than ten times faster than conventional transport. Emergency response teams gain quicker reaction times and expanded search capability by pairing wide-area scanning with rapid eVTOL launches. High-frequency commuting is another mark, with AutoFlight noting that a vertiport on Shanghai’s Huangpu River could move passengers from Hongqiao Airport to the Lujiazui business district in minutes.

Tourism joins the list as well, with “flight-plus” marketing aimed at high-end travelers looking for something flashier than a yacht. And for large-scale operations, multiple WGVs can be linked to create a distributed vertiport cluster, effectively turning a waterway into an aerial transit corridor. The system is designed for adaptability, letting cities reassign or reposition vertiports as needs change.

AutoFlight gave the platform a proper debut on November 22 at Dianshan Lake, where a 2-ton eVTOL lifted off from the floating vertiport and later joined two others for a formation flight. The trio performed live airdrop missions, showcasing use cases from supply transport to emergency rescue. The company claims that the event marked a significant step toward transitioning its concept from blueprints to a real-world mobility network.

FMI: www.autoflight.com