Flying Taxis

Are we finally living in the times of the Jetsons? We already have robot cleaners and video calls; could flying taxis be the next innovation from the future to become a reality? Joby Aviation, Inc. was founded in 2009 and went public in 2021. They are the first electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) firm to receive U.S. Air Force airworthiness certification. In 2018, the company secured $100 million from companies such as Intel, Toyota, and JetBlue to build flying taxis. Now, just over five years later, the company is ready to begin building them.

These aerial taxis will be built at a site at the Dayton International Airport in Ohio. The facility, which is near Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratories, will build, test, and fly these eVTOLs. Joby claims their air taxis will be able to carry one pilot with four other passengers and estimates that it will fly at speeds up to 200 miles per hour with a range of 100 miles.

Ohio's governor Mike DeWine said, "Ohio's legacy in aviation leadership begins with the Wright Brothers and continues now with Joby Aviation... The aircraft that will roll off Joby's production lines will redefine urban transportation and contribute to a transformational change in the way people and goods travel."

Joby's founder and CEO, JoeBen Bevirt, is excited to be working in Ohio: "Ohio is the number one state when it comes to supplying parts for Boeing and Airbus. Ohio is third in the nation on manufacturing jobs - and that depth of manufacturing prowess, that workforce, is critical to us as we look to build this manufacturing facility... We're looking forward to growing our team here."

In spite of this progress, questions remain about noise levels and charging demands. Still, developers predict that we are nearing the day when eVTOLs will provide a wide-scale alternative to shuttle individual people or small groups from rooftops and parking garages to their destinations, while avoiding the congested traffic on the streets. As an example, last year Delta Air Lines announced a partnership with Joby for a first-of-its-kind arrangement to provide customers in New York and Los Angeles a home-to-airport transportation service using their eVTOL aircraft.

Don't expect to see a flying taxi soon. Joby plans to build up to 500 flying taxis a year at the Dayton site. Construction of the site is set to start in 2024 with the facility fully opening in 2025.