Joby Aviation has announced that it has started the final assembly of its "company-conforming" electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, marking a significant milestone in the company's journey to create a commercial air taxi service by 2025, TechCrunch reports.
The same report tells us that the prototype is expected to undergo flight testing in the first half of 2023.
What's Next for Joby eVTOLs?
This news comes barely a week after Joby completed the second step of its type certification process with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This procedure ensures that the plane's design and parts meet the agency's noise and airworthiness standards for commercial passenger use.
The aviation firm claims it is the first eVTOL company to attain this milestone, having also completed stage one and published its Certification Basis in the Federal Register. By reaching this goal, Joby will be one step closer to its 2025 goal of starting a commercial passenger service.
Joby is now working on the last three steps of the process, which will lead to production certification and allow the company to make a lot of eVTOLs using designs that the FAA has approved.
To pass the FAA checkups, Joby has implemented an intense quality management system that tracks and documents every part of the aircraft, the design drawings used to manufacture the components, and environmental conditions during fabrication.
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Didier Papadopoulos, the head of aircraft OEM at Joby, says in a statement that these steps bring the company closer to receiving its production certification.
Joby eVTOLs to Fly Commercially Soon
The aircraft, which will be the first to be produced at Joby's pilot manufacturing facility in Marina, California, has already fused the major structures, such as the wing, tail, and fuselage, and installed wiring, electronics, actuation, and propulsion systems. The facility is designed to prove Joby's manufacturing process through low-rate manufacturing, with the capacity to produce tens of aircraft per year.
Joby is reviewing proposals from various states for its Phase 1 manufacturing site, which will ramp up production and generate jobs.
With these accomplishments, Joby Aviation is moving closer to providing a commercial air taxi service by 2025. The eVTOL aircraft developed by the business is anticipated to transform the air transportation sector by delivering a safe, economical, and environmentally friendly mode of transportation.
The Joby eVTOL has already been covered by many news outlets such as ABC, Sky News, TechCrunch, and more.
Latest from Joby
Sky News reports that United Arab Emirates PM Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum recently announced that the designs for new air taxi stations across Dubai had been approved.
After it was first announced in 2017, he said that flying taxi services would start in Dubai within the next three years. This indicated that the city was committed to the project.
A promotional video posted on Twitter by the ruler shows a six-rotor electric flying taxi made by Joby Aviation.
Check out the tweet here:
Dubai is a high-growth, high-innovation economy. We were honored to present Joby to @HHShkMohd today and discuss what aerial ridesharing can do for Dubai. https://t.co/jyrgkWLYLR
— Joby Aviation (@jobyaviation) February 12, 2023
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