- Joby becomes first company to fly an electric aircraft as part
of NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility National Campaign
- Two-week test campaign will analyze the noise footprint of
Joby’s aircraft
- Builds on almost a decade of joint research by Joby and NASA
into electric flight
Joby Aviation, Inc. (“Joby” or “the Company”) (NYSE:JOBY) this
week became the first company to fly an all-electric vertical
takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as part of NASA’s Advanced Air
Mobility (AAM) National Campaign.
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210901005334/en/
The Joby aircraft (Photo: Business
Wire)
NASA’s AAM National Campaign is designed to promote public
confidence in emerging aviation markets, such as passenger air
taxis, through flight testing in realistic scenarios and data
analysis that will inform the development of regulatory standards
for emerging aviation platforms.
As part of the two-week test campaign at Joby’s Electric Flight
Base near Big Sur, California, NASA and Joby will join forces to
study the acoustic signature of the all-electric Joby aircraft,
which the company intends to operate as part of a commercial
passenger service beginning in 2024.
"NASA is proud to continue our relationship with Joby by
gathering highly valuable aircraft safety and noise data that will
contribute towards an aviation future that includes Advanced Air
Mobility (AAM) operations," said Davis Hackenberg, NASA AAM mission
integration manager. "Data from industry leaders like Joby is
critical for NASA’s research activities and future standardization
of emerging aircraft configurations. Industry partnerships are
imperative for the United States to become a leader in the
development of a safe and sustainable AAM ecosystem."
NASA engineers will deploy their Mobile Acoustics Facility and
more than 50 pressure ground-plate microphones in a grid array that
allows for multi-directional measurement of the Joby aircraft’s
sound emissions. Using this data, NASA and Joby will generate noise
hemispheres for the aircraft that capture the intensity and the
character of the sound emitted in comparison to helicopters,
drones, and other aircraft.
These readings, in combination with the noise profile of urban
communities, can be used to verify how proposed aircraft operations
will blend into the existing background noise. Joby has released
several videos showcasing the quiet nature of the company’s
aircraft during take-off, hover, and overhead flight.
“NASA has been a critical catalyst in the transition to electric
aviation, and we’re proud to have partnered with them on multiple
groundbreaking projects since our first collaboration in 2012,”
said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO at Joby. “It’s incredibly
exciting to be the first eVTOL company to fly as part of the AAM
National Campaign, leading the way toward a more sustainable
future.”
“From day one, we prioritized building an aircraft that not only
has an extremely low noise profile, but blends seamlessly into the
natural environment. We have always believed that a minimal
acoustic footprint is key to making aviation a convenient part of
everyday movement without compromising quality of life, and we’re
excited to fly with NASA, our long-time partners in electric
flight, to demonstrate the acoustic profile of our aircraft.”
Joby’s participation in the National Campaign marks the next
step in a long history of collaboration between the two parties.
Over the last decade, Joby has worked with NASA on a range of
aircraft projects that have explored electric propulsion, including
a long-endurance eVTOL demonstrator called Lotus, the Leading Edge
Asynchronous Propeller Technology (LEAPTech) project, and the
design of the X-57 Maxwell experimental aircraft now undergoing
systems integration testing.
With a maximum range of 150 miles recently demonstrated during
flight testing, and a top speed of 200 mph, Joby’s aircraft is
designed to carry four passengers and a pilot with zero operating
emissions. With more than 1,000 flight tests completed and
full-scale prototypes in the air since 2017, Joby Aviation aims to
certify its electric air taxi with the Federal Aviation
Administration (“FAA”) in 2023.
The aircraft is powered by six propellers that tilt to enable
vertical takeoff and efficient cruise flight. The number of blades,
blade radius, tip speeds, and disk loading of the aircraft were all
selected to minimize the acoustic footprint and improve the
character of the noise produced. The propellers can also
individually adjust their tilt, rotational speed, and blade pitch,
helping to avoid the blade vortex interactions that cause the “wop
wop” sound we associate with traditional helicopters.
Once testing is complete, a team of acoustic experts from NASA
and Joby will work together to analyze the data before sharing
their findings later in the year.
A blog post detailing the history of Joby’s partnership with
NASA was previously published on Joby’s company website.
Joby recently listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”)
under the ticker symbol “JOBY” following its successful business
combination with Reinvent Technology Partners. Proceeds raised in
the transaction plus cash on the Company’s balance sheet as of
March 31, 2021, equal approximately $1.6 billion, which is expected
to fund Joby through initial commercial operations.
ABOUT JOBY AVIATION
Joby Aviation, Inc. (NYSE:JOBY) is a California-headquartered
transportation company developing an all-electric vertical takeoff
and landing aircraft which it intends to operate as part of a fast,
quiet, and convenient air taxi service beginning in 2024. The
aircraft, which has a maximum range of 150 miles on a single
charge, can transport a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up
to 200 mph. It is designed to help reduce urban congestion and
accelerate the shift to sustainable modes of transit. Founded in
2009, Joby employs more than 800 people, with offices in Santa
Cruz, San Carlos, and Marina, California, as well as Washington
D.C. and Munich, Germany. To learn more, visit
www.jobyaviation.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited
to, statements regarding the planned campaign with NASA,
development of Joby’s aircraft and financial and market outlook.
Forward-looking statements give Joby’s current expectations and
projections relating to our financial condition, results of
operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business. You
can identify forward-looking statements by the fact that they do
not relate strictly to historical or current facts. These
statements may include words such as “anticipate”, “estimate”,
“expect”, “project”, “plan”, “intend”, “believe”, “may”, “will”,
“should”, “can have”, “likely” and other words and terms of similar
meaning in connection with any discussion of the timing or nature
of future operating or financial performance or other events. All
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties
that may cause actual results to differ materially from those that
we expected, including: Joby’s limited operating history and
history of losses; its ability to launch its aerial ridesharing
service and the growth of the urban air mobility market generally;
Joby’s plans to operate a commercial passenger service beginning in
2024; the competitive environment in which it operates; its future
capital needs; its ability to adequately protect and enforce its
intellectual property rights; its ability to effectively respond to
evolving regulations and standards relating to its aircraft; its
reliance on a third-party suppliers and service partners;
uncertainties related to Joby’s estimates of the size of the market
for its aircraft and future revenue opportunities; and other
important factors discussed in the Company’s final prospectus and
definitive proxy statement, dated April 2, 2021, filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), as updated by the
factors disclosed in the section titled “Risk Factors” in its
Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on August 16, 2021,
and in other reports the Company files with or furnishes to the
SEC. Any such forward-looking statements represent management’s
estimates and beliefs as of the date of this press release. While
Joby may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some
point in the future, it disclaims any obligation to do so, even if
subsequent events cause its views to change.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210901005334/en/
Investors: investors@jobyaviation.com +1-831-201-6006
Media: Joby: press@jobyaviation.com Mojgan Khalili
+1-408-489-4015
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