Dirk Hoke, former CEO of Airbus Defence & Space, was announced as the new chief executive officer and managing director of urban air mobility company Volocopter by the company’s advisory board. He will start his position in September 2022 and replaces Florian Reuter, who has led Volocopter from a five-person start-up to a 500-employee company. Hoke brings extensive experience in leading big tech entities within Airbus and Siemens from a technical, strategic, and commercial side. His strong track record in transformation and digitalisation made him the candidate of choice, the company said.
“Out of an impressive lineup of candidates, Dirk Hoke was our absolute preferred choice. Combining our success with Dirk’s experience and vision for our company, Volocopter will continue to lead the emerging industry and successfully master the coming phase of growth and commercialisation,” said Stefan Klocke, chairman of the advisory board. “The ability to attract such a renowned industry leader is proof of the quality of the work done by our team. Volocopter is in the best shape ever: We fly our aircraft in cities worldwide, increased our valuation to over US$1.7 billion, raised over US$579 million in funds, and established historic industry milestones that make us the undisputed leader in UAM. All this would not have been possible without the passionate leadership of Florian over the past seven years. We are truly grateful for his extraordinary contribution and let him go with a heavy heart. We fully respect and understand his personal decision and are happy to keep him in the family as a friend and shareholder.”
“No company is closer to making this most innovative form of mobility a reality in cities around the world than Volocopter. Bringing electric air taxis to market in the next years is a dream come true not only for me but for many,” said Hoke. “My experience from Airbus and Siemens will help us monetise on the leading market position Volocopter has achieved under Florian’s leadership. Volocopter’s product lineup, its certification progress, team spirit, and ecosystem approach put us in a unique competitive position.”
Reuter will leave Volocopter upon his own wishes after a successful handover period to Hoke has been completed in September 2022.
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