Belief updating in the low-altitude economy: safety information, presentation context, and willingness to pay

When a new service is introduced, business success hinges on how consumers perceive its risks. This study examines public attitudes toward low-altitude Passenger Transport (PT) and Goods Delivery (GD), focusing on perceived safety, willingness to participate, and willingness to pay (WTP). We field an online survey experiment with a mixed design: a within-subject contrast (Pre-Info → Post-Info) to assess updating after targeted safety statistics, and between-subject factors contrasting Single-project framing (SPF) versus Multi-project framing (MPF) and PT versus GD. Safety information increased perceived safety across all groups, and perceived safety was positively correlated with WTP both Pre-Info and Post-Info, with the association modestly stronger Post-Info. Presentation context also mattered: MPF yielded more favorable WTP distributions than SPF overall, with the strongest gains for GD. For PT, MPF reduced safety concern relative to SPF in Pre-Info comparisons, but its incremental Post-Info effect was small and not statistically significant in regressions. Across conditions, GD was viewed as safer and more acceptable than PT. These findings suggest that framing a new low-altitude service within a broader portfolio and providing concise safety statistics can enhance acceptance—especially for GD—while PT may require additional, service-specific assurances as part of a phased introduction strategy.