AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2023 - 57

2025, and it must complete two more FAA systems
reviews. Two previous reviews have been completed,
and there's also an ongoing means of compliance
review that examines certification plans for each of
the aircraft's systems. So far, Joby has announced
that 84 percent of its means of compliance plans have
been accepted by the FAA. Joby has already received
its Part 135 air carrier certificate from the FAA, which
will enable it to operate air taxi services as soon as the
S4 is certified. Joby has two placeholders in its infant
Part 135 fleet-a Cirrus SR22 and a Van's RV-8.
Like other eVTOL manufacturers, Joby is waiting
to learn about details of the FAA's latest change
of mind regarding eVTOL certification. Originally,
they were to be certified under Part 23 fixed-wing
rules, with certain exceptions. Late in 2022, the FAA
determined that eVTOLs, with their transitions from
vertical to horizontal flight, needed to be put under
new rules and categorized as " powered lift " aircraft
which will be certified under FAR 21.17(b)-rules
intended to apply to aircraft for which standards don't
already exist. The new rules let companies choose
from among portions of other regulations, such as Part
33 (engines), Part 35 (propellers), and Parts 27 and 29
(rotorcraft)-with changes to allow safe flight below
the wing's stall speed of a powered lift aircraft. Joby
expects approval by 2024, followed by entry of the S4
into service in 2025.
It has taken a lot of investment to pursue this target.
Joby seems to have done fairly well in this area. In
2017 Toyota put $400 million into the S4 program, plus
technical personnel. Delta Airlines has made an initial
investment of $60 million, with an eye to using the S4
as a shuttle fleet to and from the airports it serves, with
an option for $200 million more as milestones are met.
A special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) took
Joby to a spot on the New York Stock Exchange, where
trading is at $4 per share at this writing. Additionally, a
contract worth potentially $75 million has been signed
with the U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps to provide
S4s to the Agility Prime program. Industry watchdog
SMG Consulting says Joby's total funding has reached
the $1.9 billion mark, and rates Joby as " highly likely "
to succeed in the long run. Joby's business model is
vertically integrated; it fabricates and manufactures all
its components. As for the finished products, in effect,
Joby will only sell S4s to itself. In operation, it plans to
follow the Uber Elevate plan, which isn't surprising as
Uber invested $75 million in Joby back in 2020, forming
an expanded partnership. Passengers would use an
Uber Air app to reserve a seat, and an S4 would show
up at a designated pick-up spot-the company has contracted
with Skyports to provide terminals-then fly
them between airports and central locations in and
An S4 in hover mode (above). A human pilot in the DCS'
" cockpit " serves as the real pilot during autonomous
test flights.
around such major cities as New York, Washington,
D.C., Miami, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Knowing
that quiet operation will be a critical issue to public
acceptance, the S4 is fitted with long, specially shaped
propellers that turn slowly (250-800 rpm) to create
barely perceptible noise levels (an average of 45.2 dBA
at 1,640 feet) in an urban environment.
The S4 isn't Joby's only interest. In April 2022,
when no one was looking, Joby bought German hydrogen
aircraft startup H2FLY, a company with a vision
to produce a range of hydrogen-powered airplanes,
from four- to six-seat air taxis to 40-seat regional airplanes
with 1,000-nautical-mile ranges. A four-seat
prototype H2FLY powered by 20 pounds of pressurized
hydrogen, with a massive wingspan and a claimed
380-nm range, was on display at last year's Aero
Friedrichshafen, and flew to 7,230 feet. So, it seems
reasonable to suspect that Joby will extend itself into
hydrogen-powered flight. " I am committed to decarbonizing
aviation, " Bevirt said.
Joby, despite its reputation for secrecy, looks like
it's in for a lot more attention.
tom.horne@aopa.org
AOPA PILOT / April 2023
57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2023

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