Hyundai Elevator, Korean Air, Hyundai Motor push to build out UAM ecosystem

South Korea's urban air mobility ecosystem is taking shape, with automakers and airlines accelerating aircraft and traffic management development while vertiport construction becomes increasingly concrete, laying the groundwork for eventual commercialization.

Hyundai Elevator plans to complete its vertical-storage vertiport, H-Port, as early as the end of this month, according to industry sources. The three-story structure serves as a UAM hub integrating aircraft takeoff and landing, automated hangar parking, charging and maintenance, and passenger boarding and alighting under a single control system.

The company's vertical and horizontal movement technology — the core of its elevator business — allows the facility to be built in dense urban areas where large sites are difficult to secure. H-Port stacks its landing pad, maintenance space and boarding area in a layered configuration, with aircraft moving vertically between floors. Unlike conventional vertiports that require expansive footprints, the design can be built as a high-rise structure in the heart of a city.

Aircraft development is also gaining momentum. Hyundai Motor Group recently partnered with Korea Aerospace Industries to commercialize advanced air mobility by 2034. While UAM refers to short-range urban air transport for passengers and cargo, AAM extends the concept to inter-regional travel. The two companies are expected to expand their scope to cover cargo delivery, emergency medical transport to remote islands, and military logistics and reconnaissance.

More specifically, Supernal — Hyundai Motor Group's US-based future air mobility subsidiary — and Korea Aerospace Industries will jointly develop an electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. Hyundai Motor and Kia will collaborate through their aviation powertrain division to commercialize an aviation-grade electric powertrain currently under development.

Korean Air is also deepening its partnership with US eVTOL leader Archer Aviation. The two companies plan to co-develop a version of Archer's crewed eVTOL, Midnight, for expanded use in government programs — with initial deployment focused on rapid military logistics and personnel transport.

Korean Air has also developed and is refining its own UAM traffic management and flight control system. ACROSS, built by integrating the airline's aircraft operations expertise, completed a demonstration over the Greater Seoul area last year, gathering flight data and verifying the system's technical reliability.

Korean Air plans to integrate ACROSS with VAS, a vertiport operations platform developed by UK-based Skyports, to build a comprehensive platform covering all aspects of vertiport operations — including passenger check-in, arrivals, disembarkation and security screening.

With major domestic companies now investing in UAM infrastructure and aircraft development, South Korea's long-delayed UAM industry is expected to regain momentum. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport had originally targeted commercial launch in 2025, but pushed the deadline back to 2028 after aircraft certification, safety standards and infrastructure development all fell behind schedule. During last year's K-UAM demonstration, helicopters were used in place of actual UAM aircraft for some tests.

The global market is also entering a growth trajectory. The worldwide UAM market is projected to expand from $6.02 billion in 2026 to $17.53 billion in 2034, according to Fortune Business Insights. Led by the United States and China, major players including Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, EHang, Volocopter and Lilium are pressing ahead with development aimed at commercial operations within the next few years.

"Countries that began nurturing their UAM industries around the same time as South Korea have recently made considerable progress," said Lee Hwi-yeong, a professor of aviation management and logistics systems at Inha Technical College. "Korea must move quickly to establish the legal framework needed for UAM operations and build out basic infrastructure such as verti-hubs and vertiports."