VOA时事新闻2023 巴黎奥运会或将推出"空中出租车"服务（在线收听）

French officials are preparing to offer flying taxi services to people attending the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024.

法国官员正准备为参加2024年巴黎夏季奥运会的人们提供空中出租车服务。

If the taxis are actually deployed in the French capital, it could mark the first major real world demonstration of the flying technology.

如果真的在法国首都部署这些出租车，这可能是这项飞行技术首次在现实世界中进行重大演示。

Some air taxi developers attended the recent Paris Air Show to show off their products and seek industry support.

一些空中出租车开发商参加了最近的巴黎航展，展示了他们的产品，并寻求行业支持。

One of the companies in attendance was Germany's Volocopter, which plans to offer a flying taxi service during the Olympics.

德国的Volocopter公司就是其中之一，该公司计划在奥运会期间提供空中出租车服务。

But so far, no air taxi maker has received government approval to launch service in France.

但到目前为止，还没有一家空中出租车制造商获得政府批准在法国推出这项服务。

Volocopter hopes to be the first.

Volocopter希望成为第一家获得批准的公司。

But the company still needs to run its aircraft through intensive weather tests and provide thousands of pages of documentation to the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

但该公司仍然需要对这种飞行器进行严格的天气测试，并向欧洲航空安全局提供数千页的证明文件。

Company chief Dirk Hoke admitted to the Reuters news agency that securing the approval will not be easy.

该公司首席执行官德克·霍克向路透社承认，获得批准并非易事。

"It's not a walk in the park to be the first…" he said.

他说：“成为第一家获得批准的公司可不像在公园里散步一样简单”。

Volocopter plans to carry out tests of its electric air taxis in different environments in Germany next month.

Volocopter公司计划下个月在德国的不同环境中对其电动空中出租车进行测试。

Hoke said that in addition to worries about government approvals, the environment for air taxi companies has also faced difficulties linked to economic slowdowns affecting the world.

霍克说，除了担心得不到政府的批准外，空中出租车公司的环境也面临着与影响全球的经济放缓有关的困难。

Robin Riedel co-leads the Center for Future Mobility at the business advisory company McKinsey.

罗宾·里德尔是商业咨询公司麦肯锡未来移动中心的联合负责人。

She told Reuters that companies formed to support air taxi projects have lost about 30 percent of their value in recent years.

她告诉路透社，为支持空中出租车项目而成立的公司近年来损失了约30%的价值。

In addition, many investors have decided to put money into drones instead of flying taxis.

此外，许多投资者决定将资金投入无人机，而不是空中出租车。

Industry experts say they fear these struggles could signal more financial problems for many other companies involved in air taxi development.

业内专家表示，他们担心这些困难可能预示着，其他许多参与空中出租车开发的公司将会面临更多财务问题。

Hoke – a former top executive at air industry player Airbus – has thought about a person he would like to be the first rider of his flying taxis – French President Emmanuel Macron.

霍克曾是航空业巨头空中客车公司的高管，他想让法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙成为他的空中出租车的第一个乘客。

"That would be super amazing," Hoke told The Associated Press at the Paris Air Show.

霍克在巴黎航展上告诉美联社：“这将是太棒了。”

He added: "(Macron) believes in the innovation of urban air mobility. That would be a strong sign to Europe to see the president flying."

他补充说：“马克龙相信城市空中交通的创新。这将是让欧洲看到总统乘坐空中出租车的一个强烈信号。”

One of the five planned Olympic trips would land in the heart of the city on a floating pad on the River Seine.

规划好的五条奥运路线中有一条将降落在城市的中心塞纳河上的一个浮动平台上。

In the beginning, air taxi trips are likely to be short and costly.

一开始，空中出租车的行程可能会很短，价格也很昂贵。

This is because limited battery technology restricts the distance and number of paying passengers the aircraft can carry.

这是因为有限的电池技术限制了空中出租车的行驶距离和可以搭载的付费乘客的数量。

The long-term success of air taxis will also be dependent on effective systems to manage all the air traffic using the skies.

空中出租车的长期成功还将取决于有效的管理所有使用天空的空中交通的系统。

Experts say such systems will need new technology to provide safety for all flyers.

专家表示，这样的系统需要新技术来为所有乘客提供安全保障。

As the industry progresses, the number of air taxis and drones is expected to reach into the millions.

随着该行业的发展，空中出租车和无人机的数量预计将达到数百万架。

Hoke said that one thing is sure, "It will be a total new experience for the people."

霍克说，有一点是肯定的，“对人们来说，这将是一种全新的体验。”

He added, "Twenty years later (when) someone looks back at what changed based on that, and then they call it a revolution. And I think we are at the edge of the next revolution."

他补充说：“20年后，当有人回顾在此基础上发生的变化时，他们称之为革命。我认为我们正面临下一次革命。”

I'm Bryan Lynn.

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