Tag: Electric Air Taxis

FAA Announces Pilot Training, Certification Rules for Air Taxis

Reuters reports, “The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday finalized comprehensive training and pilot certification rules for flying air taxis, addressing a key hurdle to the deployment of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. The FAA called the rule ‘the final piece in the puzzle for safely introducing these aircraft in the near term.’ Some flying companies hope to begin flying commercial passengers as soon as 2025.”
Full Story (Reuters)

Joby Aviation Achieves Key Air Taxi Certification Milestone

Flying Magazine reports “It’s full steam ahead for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi manufacturer Joby Aviation.”  The company recently reported its fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 earnings and revealed “that it recorded revenue for the first time” while “announcing plans to ramp up testing, certification, and manufacturing activities.” Joby is “the first eVTOL manufacturer to complete the third of five stages in FAA type certification, and the firm is now turning to stage four: for-credit flight testing with the regulator.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

Future Flight Global May Purchase Up to 116 Air Taxis from Archer Aviation

Flying Magazine reports, “Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft manufacturer Archer Aviation this week secured another purchase order agreement for its flagship Midnight air taxi. The company on Tuesday said it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Future Flight Global (FFG), a startup that plans to operate eVTOL and other advanced air mobility (AAM) aircraft, for the planned sale of as many as 116 air taxis.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

Archer, Joby to Provide Air Taxi Service in Abu Dhabi

Flying Magazine reports, “Two titans in the electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi industry are building on their previously announced plans to serve the United Arab Emirates. At the inaugural DriftX conference in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, Archer Aviation and Joby Aviation, both headquartered in California, signed agreements with Abu Dhabi government agencies to introduce their respective air taxis in the Emirate.”
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)

Joby CEO Announces 84% Completion of Stage 3 FAA Certification Work for EVTOL Aircraft

Aviation Today reports that Joby Aviation CEO JoeBen Bevirt says the company’s eVTOL aircraft is 84% on its way to completing FAA Stage 3 certification requirements. The company “checked off several milestones in the past three months that bring it ever closer to launching commercial passenger flights in 2025.” Joby is “ramping up production at its pilot manufacturing facility in Merina, Calif., with one aircraft in final assembly and two more in production.” It also has “chosen Dayton, Ohio, as the site for the first scaled manufacturing facility, after receiving promises for $325 million in state and local incentives and benefits, Bevirt said.”
Full Story (Aviation Today)

Joby Aviation Founder Says Electric Air Taxis Will be in Service by 2025

The AP reports that in an interview, Joby Aviation founder JoeBen Bevirt said that its electric air taxis will be in service within two years. Bevirt “insists that his Santa Cruz, California-based company…can meet an ambitious target of entering commercial air taxi service in 2025.” However, “Like other eVTOL startups, Joby is losing money – more than $400 million in 2021-2022. Analysts don’t know when, if ever, it will be profitable.” Bevirt said, “Our goal is absolutely still to achieve commercial service in 2025, and given the progress we’re making on certification and the progress we’re making on the manufacturing front, we’re excited to just be day after day knocking down the milestones.”
Full Story (Associated Press)

Archer Aviation to Operate Electric Air Taxis in Los Angeles by 2026

Flying Magazine reports, “Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft manufacturer Archer Aviation is adding a third major U.S. city to its planned air taxi network in partnership with United Airlines. The company on Thursday announced it intends to launch a city center-to-airport network in Los Angeles by 2026, building on its plans to fly in New York City and Chicago. The service is meant to replace one-to-two-hour drives by car with more direct aerial routes while remaining cost competitive with ground-based rideshare options such as Uber and Lyft.”
Full Story (Flying Magazine)

Is an ‘Industry Killer’ Coming for Advanced Air Mobility?

Aerospace America reports that among the proposed rules “in the United States for the coming class of electric air taxis is one that is striking a particularly sour note for backers of these vertical lift aircraft.” The Federal Aviation Administration’s proposed Special Federal Aviation Regulation, or SFAR, “would require the operators of electrical vertical takeoff and landing aircraft to maintain 30 minutes of reserve power beyond their planned flight times during the day and 45 minutes of reserve power during the night.” The FAA’s caution is “rooted in the long-standing practice that conventionally fueled fixed-wing passenger aircraft must be loaded with enough fuel to fly to the nearest airport in the event of a technical problem en route to a destination.” The reserve rule for eVTOLs and other rules in the SFAR “remain in a legally required comment period that runs through Aug. 14.” Vertical Flight Society Director of Strategy Mike Hirschberg said, “If you have a 45-minute reserve requirement, then your total flight time is zero. That is an industry killer. If that becomes a requirement, there will be no advanced air mobility.”
Full Story (Aerospace America)

France to Test Electric Air Taxis Before 2024 Summer Olympics

The Hill reports that France “is set to begin testing electric air taxis in the coming months, with the goal of launching them in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics.” The flying taxis “will be tested at a hub outside Paris at Pontoise” in the hopes of establishing two flight paths to the 2024 Olympics from both Paris airports and two southwest suburbs, respectively.
Full Story (The Hill)

FAA Certification Frees Archer Aviation to Assemble eVTOL Pilot Team

Aerotime reports, “The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has given Archer Aviation the green light to begin assembling a team of pilots to fly its future fleet of electric vehicle takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. Archer Aviation announced on February 18, 2025, that the eVTOL developer had received its Part 141 certificate from the FAA signifying that it is a formally recognized and regulated institution for pilot training.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

Archer Aviation Performing Piloted Flights of its Midnight Electric Aircraft

Electrek reports, “All-electric aircraft developer Archer has entered a key development phase ahead of full-fledged flight certification and commercial operations. Last week, Archer completed a piloted flight in its flagship Midnight aircraft, demonstrating a conventional takeoff and landing instead of vertical (it can do both). Check out the entire flight video.”
Full Story (Electrek)