“Two-thirds of consumers are in favour of electric aviation” – new Lilium/Opinium survey

A new survey by Opinium of 4,000 people across the US, UK, France and Germany suggests that two-thirds (65%) of consumers are in favour of electric aviation travel.

The figures, unveiled by Lilium, suggest that 60% said they would try electric aviation, while 61% specifically said they would like to try eVTOL aircraft such as the Lilium Jet, with demand strongest in Germany (64%).

“The research also revealed widespread concern over the impact on traditional aviation – 73% said they were concerned about its contribution to pollution, with the proportion highest in Germany (76%), and similarly backed by two-thirds (67%) of consumers in the US,” according to the eVTOL manufacturer. “Across all markets, 70% also said they were concerned about the role of aviation in climate change.

“The survey also highlighted the shift we are likely to see as a more sustainably minded younger population continues to make up more of the travel decisions based on how sustainable it is. In the US, adults 18-34 are 2.5 times more likely to focus on sustainability than those aged 55+ when making travel decisions….Respondents were also asked about the ways in which they would prefer to travel a journey of roughly 100 miles; while cars represented the most popular option, US respondents were most likely to opt for a flight as their second choice, choosing air travel over trains and other methods such as buses.

“The most popular scenarios among consumers for these journeys included “getting around while on holiday” (29%), “exploring places within my country” (28%) and “exploring nearby regions” (23%), with US respondents polling especially in favour of domestic travel.

“Across all territories, cost was regarded as the most important factor in making travel plans, with more than half (54%) ranking this as their top priority. However, this was closely followed by comfort (46%) and convenience of access (39%), both areas in which low infrastructure options such as eVTOLs are able to outdo the alternatives. Similarly, reflecting consumers’ ill-feeling towards traditional air travel, one-in-three (38%) of consumers across all markets said that “the amount of time spent at the airport” should be a key goal for improving air travel.

“The figures also reveal the importance of consumer awareness around new forms of transport. Across all four countries, 21% of respondents said they were aware of eVTOL aircraft and how they could be used, and this group was consistently the most enthusiastic about the future of aviation. This group was overwhelmingly more likely to agree that electric aviation is the future of air travel (67%) when compared to those who said they had never heard of eVTOL aircraft (39%).

“Similarly, these eVTOL evangelists were also the most likely to say that they could see themselves regularly switching from another mode of transportation (67%), suggesting that current levels of enthusiasm are set to build further as awareness grows.”

The research surveyed a nationally representative audience of 4,000 adults across the US, the UK, France and Germany. It was conducted between 10th and 16th July 2024 by insight agency Opinium.