Powered by six electric motors, Joby's electric aircraft takes off and lands vertically and can carry one pilot and four riders at speeds near 200 knots. Joby is engaged in a multi-year testing program with the FAA to certify the vehicle for commercial operations, and has completed the first three of five stages. It was showing the vehicle at the 2024 NBAA-BACE convention in Las Vegas and AVweb's Russ Niles caught up with Joby's chief pilot of flight operations, Garrett Smith.
At that size and with a commercial pilot flying it’s not much different from a helo today. Quieter and more environmentally friendly but obviously it’s not personal transportation where I thought eVTOL was trying to take us.