The eVTOL revolution just got one flight closer to reality.
Joby Aviation, one of the leaders in the electric air-taxi market, announced a milestone in its test program. The company did four flights last week with a pilot on board, which will move its four-passenger aircraft closer to commercial operations.
The company recently completed the piloted flights of its pre-production prototype at its Pilot Production Facility in Marina, Calif. It is also conducting flight tests at Edward Air Force Base, where Air Force Pilots are flying its eVTOL.
The electric aircraft made piloted flights from its California test facility. It’s also working with the US Air Force at Edwards Air Force Base.
Joby Aviation
The tiltrotor eVTOL is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers, with a range of 87 nautical miles and cruise speed of 200 mph. Last year, its S4 model reached a record 205 mph on a test flight.
Pilot James “Buddy” Denham, Joby’s chief test pilot, said the flights are designed to gather data about the aircraft’s handling qualities and pilot-control interfaces. He helped design and test the flight controls of the F-35 Strike Fighter, but said “nothing compares to the simplicity and grace of a Joby aircraft.”
The tests replicated what pilots will be required to perform during normal operations, including vertical takeoffs, accelerating, and transitioning to forward flight, runway centerline tracking, and decelerating to a vertical landing.
Joby delivered a prototype to Edwards Air Force Base last month to conduct flight tests with the U.S. Air Force.
Joby Aviation
The start-up is viewed as one the leaders in bringing an eVTOL to market, along with competitors Archer, Wisk, and Supernal in the U.S., Vertical Aerospace in the U.K., and Volocopter and Lilium in Germany. Joby initially said it expected its eVTOL to enter commercial service in 2024 but pushed that back a year due to supply-chain issues.
Joby’s Eric Allison told the Revolution.Aero conference last month that the firm plans to begin aerial ridesharing services in Los Angeles and New York City. It submitted its certification plans to the FAA in July after rolling out its first production prototype.
Joby recently announced it was building a facility near Dayton, Ohio, capable of producing 500 air taxis each year.