FEAM has partnered with UrbanLink Air Mobility, a South Florida-based AAM airline.
FEAM Aero is accelerating its plans to break into maintenance and aftermarket services for the advanced air mobility (AAM) segment.
Following several new AAM link-ups established last year, FEAM has now partnered with UrbanLink Air Mobility, a South Florida-based AAM airline that aims to be the first independent operator to integrate electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft into its fleet.
Launched in April 2024, UrbanLink’s fleet is set to include Lilium and Crisalion Mobility eVTOLs, Eviation’s Alice electric nine-passenger aircraft, electric sea vessels from Regent Craft and Artemis Technologies, and Traverse Aero’s fixed-wing cargo drones. The company has partnered with Ferrovial Vertiports and Skyway Technologies to establish vertiports in key markets, including South Florida and Southern California. UrbanLink will also be expanding into Europe with a focus on the Italian and Spanish markets through Crisalion Mobility’s Integrity eVTOL.
“Partnering with FEAM Aero ensures that our fleet operates at the highest standards of safety and reliability,” says UrbanLink founder and Chairman Ed Wegel. “UrbanLink has developed a comprehensive, integrated strategy for global operations. As we move toward launching the first all-electric AAM fleet in the U.S., FEAM Aero’s expertise will be instrumental in reducing downtime and enhancing operational efficiency.”
In March 2024, FEAM told Aviation Week that it felt well positioned to support the AAM aftermarket. “We’ve been kind of under the radar the last couple of years,” said Dan Allawat, FEAM’s chief strategy officer. “We have a thought that with 30-plus physical locations and 1,400 or so mechanics, we have an infrastructure, geography and workforce that will be of value to that community as it evolves. And we believe that our mechanics will be touching electric and/or hydrogen-powered airplanes sooner rather than later.”
FEAM operates more than 50 global line stations in the U.S., UK and Europe, as well as a base maintenance facility in Miami and a two-hangar base maintenance facility at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG). At CVG, it also plans to incorporate AAM-relevant curriculum into its aircraft mechanic school joint venture with Epic Flight Academy, and FEAM has established an office at the National Advanced Air Mobility Center of Excellence in Springfield, Ohio, to cultivate AAM partnerships.
In November 2024, FEAM announced a strategic partnership with Japanese eVTOL manufacturer SkyDrive focused on routes originating from regional airports. SkyDrive established U.S. subsidiary SkyDrive America in 2023, located in Beaufort, South Carolina, to develop AAM use cases and opportunities in the American market. The company is developing a piloted two-passenger eVTOL air taxi.
In April 2024, FEAM partnered with hydrogen-electric engine developer ZeroAvia. The companies signed a memorandum of understanding at Aviation Week Network’s MRO Americas event related to retrofit, maintenance and technical support for hydrogen-electric aircraft.
FEAM already provides maintenance services for platforms relevant to the powertrain ZeroAvia is developing for 30-90-seat aircraft, including De Havilland Canada Dash 8s and Bombardier CRJs. At the time of the memorandum of understanding, FEAM signaled plans to potentially establish a green hydrogen production facility at one of its U.S. locations to help support early retrofits, testing and training. FEAM has not yet responded to Aviation Week’s requests for comment about whether it still intends to do so.
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