- Joby Aviation plans to launch commercial “air taxis” in New York City and Los Angeles in 2025.
- Joby’s eVTOLs offer a quieter, zero-emissions alternative to cars and helicopters.
- The company has backing from from Toyota, Uber, and Delta Air Lines.
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Electric aircraft manufacturer Joby Aviation plans to launch commercial “air taxis” in New York City and Los Angeles by late 2025 as a more efficient alternative to driving or taking the train.
Joby says its electric takeoff and landing vehicle, or eVTOL, would shuttle people between airports and city centers for the price of a cab and allow customers to cut their travel time from hours to just minutes by avoiding congestion.
The company expects its eVTOLs to receive a warm welcome from city residents sick of hearing loud helicopters overhead.
While the thought of flying taxis sounds very Jetsons — it’s no pipe dream.
Joby has secured hundreds of millions of dollars of investments from Toyota, Delta Air Lines, and Uber, with which it has a strategic partnership to launch its commercial air taxi service by 2025 (pending regulatory approval).
Business Insider toured the futuristic helicopter-airplane hybrid in New York City.
I thought this flashy display was a smart marketing move.
Executives from Joby, Delta, and Uber spoke about the aircraft while dozens of people lined up just outside the ropes taking photos of the eVTOL, trying to figure out what the hype was about.
The four-passenger cabin is basic but still sleek and spacious.
Joby says the eVTOL can fly up to 100 miles on a single charge (plus energy reserves), reach speeds of up to 200 mph, and carry up to four passengers and their luggage.
I thought the interior of the eVTOL was spacious but nothing too bougie — which makes sense considering the short length of the flights.
One pilot will fly the aircraft.
Some pilot unions have voiced concerns about single-pilot operations.
However, Joby’s president of operations and former US airline pilot Bonny Simi told BI that this type of flying is already safely practiced.
“The aircraft is very easy and simple to fly,” she said. “And there are already commercial operations with single pilots that fly no problem, like Cape Air and New York City helicopters.”
Joby’s eVTOL pilots will be employed by Joby and fly on behalf of the manufacturer and carriers like Delta.
Pilots will need at least 500 hours of flight experience.
Simi said an eligible candidate must be a commercial pilot with 500 hours of flight time and have an instrument rating, meaning they can fly using just aircraft instruments rather than relying on visuals.
She said experienced pilots from airlines and the military will be part of the pipeline, and aviators who fly for Joby could benefit from being home every night.
“Airline pilots are gone all the time, between transcontinental flights, all-nighters, and international flights; it is a lot,” she said.
6 adjustable propellers power the eVTOL.
Joby’s eVTOL takes off like a helicopter and flies like an airplane, thanks to its tilting propellers.
According to Joby, the tilt design enables the aircraft for vertical takeoff and landing and cruise flight. Further, the propellers’ tilt, rotational speed, and blade pitch can be individually adjusted to reduce noise.
Simi explained that if one propulsion unit fails, the opposing one will de-power to maintain balance, noting the eVTOL hovers fine on four units and can fly like an airplane on just two.
Joby CEO JoeBen Bevirt described the eVTOL’s noise level as ‘wind in the trees.’
New York City residents have long complained about noisy helicopters. During the event, Bevirt said that Joby’s quieter eVTOL would make this a non-issue.
The company partnered with NASA in 2022 to study the noise profile of the aircraft. The results showed Joby’s eVTOL noise level was 45.2 A-weighted decibels at an altitude of about 1,640 feet and a speed of 100 knots. Takeoff and landing levels were below 65 dBA.
According to Yale, the eVTOL’s cruise noise is quieter than that of a household refrigerator. Takeoff and landing would be equivalent to that of a typical business office.
The eVTOL could cut travel times by flying over city traffic.
According to the company, a flight between Downtown Manhattan and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport would last just seven minutes — cutting more than an hour off the drive time during rush hour traffic.
Simi said the eVTOL could reach further away airports, such as White Plains, about 30 miles north of Manhattan, and Republic Airport in suburban Long Island, about 40 miles east.
“We can draw the Long Island crowd and the Connecticut crowd,” she said.
Joby said the air taxi rides will be the price of an Uber Black.
Joby wants its eVTOL to be affordable for everyone — not just the rich and famous.
Simi said the company expects the early days of commercial operations to be priced about that of an Uber Black, with plans to lower than to an Uber XL or less as the global fleet grows.
The pricing is per seat.
Delta wants a piece of the pie.
Delta’s SVP of sustainability performance and strategic partnership, Gail Grimmett, told BI that the airline’s multimillion-dollar investment will create “seamless” connectivity between Delta flights and eVTOLs.
“The thing that really attracted us to it is the commitment to the customer experience, which is extremely important to us as we improve our own customer experience and eliminate the pain points,” she said. “It’s also good for the environment because it’s net-zero and takes cars off the road, and for the communities because it’s so quiet.”
Delta has a huge presence in New York City and Los Angeles and has already invested billions in renovating the airport terminals. Grimmett said Delta is working with both city port authorities to develop vertiports at the hubs.
I’m not convinced everyone will be able to afford Joby’s eVTOL.
Assuming Joby gets its eVTOL pricing down from an Uber Black to the price of a cheaper Uber X — which could take many years — that’s still a costly ride.
As of Friday morning, an Uber X for a family of four from New York to downtown Manhattan costs $122 and takes about an hour. An eVTOL would cut the travel time to minutes but cost the same family nearly $500 since the pricing is per seat. Uber XL or Uber Black pricing would be even more.
I’m not convinced Joby’s pricing will be affordable for most people and will likely instead be a more premium product. I’d equate it to New York’s Blade helicopter transfers — where seats start at about $200 — but electric.
However, I can see business travelers (and leisure travelers with money to burn) as regular eVTOL users who don’t mind splurging to save time.
Joby faces stiff competition in the growing air-taxi market.
Joby isn’t the only player. In the US, Archer Aviation has created a full-scale eVTOL prototype called Midnight that it expects will fly in New York and Chicago. United Airlines has already ordered $1 billion worth of Archer’s electric air taxi.
Abroad, Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer has created Eve Air Mobility, while British electric planemaker Vertical Aerospace has developed the VX4. Both have garnered interest from global air carriers, including American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic Airways, and Japan Airlines.
Despite its novelty, I don’t think the concept is anything to balk at — assuming Joby can prove its eVTOL’s promised safety, efficiency, and affordability.