Air India Limited has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan’s SkyDrive Inc. and Suzuki Motor Corporation to jointly conduct a feasibility study on the use of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for medical air logistics in India.
Signed on 31 July 2026, the partnership will evaluate the use of eVTOL aircraft for transporting blood, organs, medicines and diagnostic samples to improve last-mile emergency medical logistics across the country.
The initiative also aligns with the Government of India’s recently launched National Ambulance Services (NAS), 2026 guidelines, which aim to reduce emergency response times and improve access to emergency care, particularly in rural, remote and difficult-to-reach areas.
As part of the study, Air India will contribute its operational expertise, airport infrastructure knowledge and stakeholder network to assess the feasibility of integrating eVTOL operations into India’s medical logistics network. Ramesh Mamidala, Head of Cargo at Air India, said the initiative reflects the opportunities emerging in one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing aviation markets.
Supporting the project is SkyDrive, one of Japan’s leading eVTOL developers. The company recently became the first in Japan’s eVTOL sector to receive Approved Design Organisation (ADO) certification from the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB), highlighting its aircraft design and safety management capabilities.
Commenting on the collaboration, Tomohiro Fukuzawa, Founder and CEO of SkyDrive Inc., said, “We are incredibly proud to partner with Air India and Suzuki to take a step toward medical logistics—a sector where every second counts and lives can be saved.”
Suzuki, which already has a business and technology partnership with SkyDrive for eVTOL development, will contribute its manufacturing expertise and deep understanding of the Indian market, complementing the capabilities of its partners.
Air India’s entry into the sector comes as rival InterGlobe Enterprises, the promoter group of IndiGo, had earlier partnered with Archer Aviation to explore electric air taxi operations. More recently, the group invested ₹10 crore in Bengaluru-based Sarla Aviation to support the development of electric air taxi services.
While InterGlobe’s initiatives have primarily focused on urban passenger mobility, Air India’s partnership is centred on time-critical medical logistics, reflecting different approaches to India’s emerging eVTOL ecosystem.
The partnership marks Air India’s first formal step into the advanced air mobility (AAM) sector. However, the companies have not announced a timeline for completing the feasibility study or the potential commercial deployment of eVTOL operations.
