US Air Taxi Service Inches Closer To Commercial Flight After FAA Nod
US Air Taxi Service Inches Closer To Commercial Flight After FAA Nod
BY TYLER DURDEN FRIDAY, MAY 27, 2022 - 04:55 AM
Several years ago, flying air taxis were a distant sci-fi
future. But with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) awarding Joby
Aviation a flight certification on Thursday, it will allow the California-based
company to begin on-demand commercial air taxi operations.
Joby announced it
had received a Part 135 Air Carrier Certificate from the FAA, "allowing it
to begin on-demand commercial air taxi operations."
Joby
received the certification ahead of schedule, with completion of the process
originally expected in the second half of 2022. The five-stage process included
the submission of more than 850 pages of manuals for approval and required
Joby's initial cadre of pilots to demonstrate mastery of the company's
procedures and training under FAA observation.
The Part
135 Air Carrier Certificate is one of three FAA approvals required for Joby to
operate its revolutionary electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL)
aircraft as an air taxi service in cities and communities across the United
States, alongside a Type Certificate and a Production Certificate. - Joby
said.
Once Joby receives all three regulatory approvals, expected
before 2024, it hopes to launch "environmentally-friendly" electric
vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as an air taxi service across
major US metro areas.
"The
procedures we've prepared lay a foundation for our future eVTOL operations.
Over the coming months, we will use our Part 135 certificate to exercise the
operations and customer technology platforms that will underpin our multi-modal
ridesharing service, while also refining our procedures to ensure seamless
journeys for our customers.
"Receiving
this certificate ahead of schedule is a testament to the incredible dedication
and hard work of our team," Bonny Simi, Head of Air Operations and People
at Joby, and one of the Company's FAA-approved pilots, said.
Joby's eVTOLs can fly four passengers up to 150 miles on a single charge at speeds of up to 200 mph.
Air taxis are expected to take off and land in urban-air ports, like the one featured in central England
It's been over a hundred years since the world's first
commercial flight took off, creating the modern connected world. Now cities
will be connected with eVTOLs that could boost productivity.
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