Aviation Week reports, “While it pursues certification of its battery-powered air taxi and prepares to launch commercial service, Joby Aviation already is flying its electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft on liquid hydrogen and fuel cells. … In flight testing conducted in June, the remotely piloted aircraft completed a 523-mi. flight over Marina, California, including a vertical takeoff and landing and landing with 10% of its liquid hydrogen (LH2) fuel load remaining. This compares with the 155 mi. flown by the battery-electric S4 in 2021.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
Tag: Aeronautical
Joby May Perform Air Tours and Market Survey Flights before Starting Commercial Operations
Aviation Week Network reports, “Joby Aviation may fly passengers on air tours and market survey flights before starting commercial air taxi operations, the company says. The flights, done under FAA 91 general operations regulations, could be a sort of soft launch for the electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) developer and operator…”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
FAA Approves Joby Aviation’s Use of In-House Software for Air-Taxi Operations
Reuters reports, “Joby Aviation said on Thursday the FAA has authorized the use of the air-taxi maker’s in-house software to perform tasks such as managing pilot workload and matching passengers with aircraft similar to ride-hailing apps. The nod for the operating system, known as ElevateOS, comes as Joby gears up to launch its commercial air-taxi operations as early as 2025.”
Full Story (Reuters)
2024 AIAA AVIATION Forum to Bridge the Gap Between Visionary Concepts and Technological Reality
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 6, 2024 – Reston, Va. – AIAA announced its five-day program for the 2024 AIAA AVIATION Forum, 29 July – 2 August, Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, in pursuit of a sustainable and high-tech aviation future. The event will feature an extensive lineup of aviation leaders and innovators as speakers, panelists, and presenters, along with over 1,800 technical papers focused on the theme, “From Vision Through Velocity…Transitioning Technology into Reality.”
“We look forward to welcoming the worldwide aviation community to the 2024 AIAA AVIATION Forum – the epicenter for researchers, engineers, and pioneers driving innovation in aviation. A distinguished group of thought leaders will help lead our discussions about new capabilities on the horizon that will take us further, faster, safer, and cleaner,” said AIAA CEO Dan Dumbacher.
From the main stage, attendees will hear how 2024 will be a landmark year with certification of electric aircraft, flight testing of supersonic aircraft, expanding use of automated and autonomous systems, and the continued progress of significant military programs. The keynote speakers and panelists represent industry, government, and academia across the aviation community. Confirmed speakers include:
- Christine Andrews, Hybrid Electric Systems Leader, GE Aviation
- Yemaya Bordain, CCO, President of Americas at Daedalean AI
- A.C. Charania, Chief Technologist, NASA
- Ravi Chaudhary, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Energy, Installations, and Environment
- Perry Comeau, Head of Flight Operations & Chief Test Pilot, National Research Council Canada
- Ferguson “Juice” Dale, Owner, Semper Sky LLC
- Bruce DeCleene, Director, Office of Senior Technical Experts, FAA
- Graham Drozeski, Chief Technology Officer, Aurora Flight Sciences
- Keoki Jackson, Senior Vice President and General Manager, The MITRE Corporation
- Jimmy Kenyon, Center Director, NASA Glenn Research Center
- Nils Larson, NASA X-59 Project Test Pilot, NASA
- Mary Lombardo, Vice President, Advanced Technologies, Collins Aerospace
- Jeff Luckett, President, UPS Flight Forward
- Hendrik Meyer, Research Associate, DLR
- Dan Newman, Chief Technology Officer, Advanced Air Mobility, Honeywell
- Linda O’Brien, Vice President and Chief Engineer for Lockheed Martin Aeronautics
- David H. Robbins, Director, Infrastructure/Resiliency, Houston Airports System
- Amanda Simpson, Founder and CEO, Third Segment
- Ben Stabler, Chief Technology Officer, Heart Aerospace
The technical program will feature presentations on the latest innovations spanning 20+ aviation and aeronautics research topics, including fluid dynamics, applied aerodynamics, air transportation systems, thermophysics and heat transfer, multidisciplinary design optimization, and many more.
Attendees also can focus on electric aircraft during the AIAA/IEEE Electric Aircraft Technologies Symposium (EATS). This event is designed for electrical, propulsion system, and aerospace engineers to discuss electrified propulsion technologies for future aircraft.
“This year, we’re co-locating AIAA AVIATION Forum with ASCEND in one venue. These two signature AIAA events will deliver full technical programs, visionary discussions, and industry networking that our community counts on. With a central Expo Hall serving as the bridge between both events’ audiences, we believe attendees will be energized by this unique experience,” added Dumbacher.
Registration for the forum is open. Early-bird rates end on 10 June. Journalists who wish to cover the forum can request a Press Pass here. For the most up-to-date program information, visit aiaa.org/aviation
Media Contact: Rebecca Gray, APR, [email protected], 804.397.5270 (cell)
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
Joby Aviation Attains Autonomous Flight Developer Xwing
Flying Magazaine reports, “Joby on Tuesday announced it acquired the autonomy division of Xwing, the developer of autonomous gate-to-gate flight software Superpilot, as it looks ahead to a transition to self-flying air taxi services. The manufacturer plans to initially operate the aircraft with onboard pilots and has a partnership with Delta Air Lines to launch commercial service as early as next year.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
Joby Aviation Eyes Saudi Arabia for Electric Air Taxi Network
Flying Magazine reports, “Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi manufacturer Joby Aviation is setting its sights on Saudi Arabia. The manufacturer on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Mukamalah Aviation—a subsidiary of state-owned oil and gas company Saudi Aramco that according to Joby operates the world’s largest fleet of corporate aircraft—to introduce its eVTOL air taxi in the country.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)
Hermeus Begins Testing of Precooler Technology on Pratt & Whitney F100
Aviation International News reports, “Hermeus continues its march toward hypersonic development with the testing of its precooler technology on the Pratt & Whitney F100. The precooler lowers the temperature of incoming air, enabling an increase in the maximum speed of the turbine engine.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Eve Air Offers Preview on Progress in Building its eVTOL Prototype
Aviation International News reports, “Eve Air Mobility this week released still images and video giving glimpses of what it says is progress in building the first full-scale example of the four-passenger eVTOL aircraft it aims to bring to market in 2026. The airframe is now being assembled at a new facility at Taubaté in Brazil’s São Paulo state, but the company has not provided an update as to when it will be ready to start test flights.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Joby Concludes Flight Testing with Pre-Production eVTOL
FlightGlobal reports, “US air taxi start-up Joby Aviation has concluded the pre-production flight test programme that it launched four years ago, now transitioning into a production-focused phase of development.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)
MIT and Merlin to Collaborate on Integration of Collision Avoidance Technology
Aviation International News reports that MIT Lincoln Laboratory “is working with flight automation system developer Merlin on plans to implement new collision avoidance technology.” The organizations “will explore the commercialization of the Airborne Collision Avoidance System Xu on uncrewed aircraft. Initially, the collaboration will focus on implementing the ACAS Xu’s RTCA DO-368 software standard with the Merlin Pilot automation system Merlin is developing for use on existing aircraft.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
