Joby Unveils eVTOL Design Details And Certification Plans

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By Aviation Week Network

September 30, 2020 — Marina, CA

(Photo above: After more than six years of secret development, Joby Aviation lifts the lid on its innovative eVTOL air taxi program. Credit: Joby Aviation)

A breathless hush descends on the secluded valley where the Joby Aviation team is preparing its gleaming white electric aircraft for a flight in the heat of a California afternoon. Seldom seen and…

[Editor’s note: The rest of the article is behind a paywall. However, we were able to find some excerpts in an article by Electric VTOL News. Read on…]

A Sept. 25, 2020 Aviation Week article reiterated that the original unmanned prototype sized for four seats is referred to as “1.0” and the second aircraft, sized for five seats, is referred to as “2.0” or “second generation.”

Sized to carry four passengers and one pilot, it will be capable of operating day/night flights in instrument or visual flight rules up to 150 nm. Although only 21 ft. [6.4 m] long overall, the aircraft has a wingspan of 38 ft. [11.6 m] …

Subscale S4 prototypes were flown more than 700 times starting in 2015, and in 2017 the company began remotely piloted tests of the first-generation, full-scale “1.0” version. Building on this high-wing, six-propeller configuration, Joby started flight tests in 2019 of the second-generation “2.0” version. Changes included increased gross weight—up to 4,800 lb. [2,177 kg] — and a revised swept-forward V-tail.

Joby says “several hundred” flights have been completed to date, including some with a pilot onboard. Although some testing can be flown remotely, the certified S4 will be piloted to enable integration into the existing national airspace.  

— Joby Unveils EVTOL Design Details And Certification Plans, Aviation Week Network, Sept. 25, 2020

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Tagged Joby Aviation