日本語 
SkyDrive has signed a partnership with West Nippon Expressway Company to explore something that sounds futuristic but is being treated very practically. Using highway service areas as hubs for eVTOL operations.
The idea is not to launch flights tomorrow. This is about testing commercial viability. Can parking and service areas along expressways double up as vertiports for next-gen air mobility? If yes, you suddenly have a ready-made network spaced every 10 to 30 kilometers. That changes how these aircraft scale.
SkyDrive has already begun to develop its business operations. The organization conducted test flights in Osaka during the 2025 Expo and then conducted additional tests in Tokyo during the first part of 2026. The organizations established their partnership to achieve their shared objective of commencing commercial operations in 2028.
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For NEXCO West, this is about pushing beyond roads. Its broader strategy is to create new value around infrastructure, not just operate it. Turning rest stops into mobility hubs adds a new layer of utility and revenue.
The use cases are straightforward. Short sightseeing routes, regional connectivity, and in tougher scenarios, faster disaster response by getting eyes in the sky when ground access is limited.
Step back and this is the real play. Air mobility will not scale if it relies on building everything from scratch. Plugging into existing infrastructure is how it becomes viable. This partnership is testing exactly that.
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