Joby Aviation Inc. took its air taxi to New York City, giving New Yorkers a demonstration of what they can expect to see happening daily in less than two years — flights from lower Manhattan out to JFK International Airport in less than seven minutes.
Flights took place on Sunday and Monday, giving Joby (NYSE: JOBY) its first-ever test of its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft in an urban setting. (Watch a news report from Fox 5 TV in New York City below.)
“By electrifying one of the most famous heliports in the world, New York is demonstrating global leadership in the adoption of electric air travel," said Joby CEO JoeBen Bevirt, according to a news release. Bevirt was talking about the Downtown Heliport in Manhattan, a place where helicopters now take tourists on sightseeing trips and Uber operates a helicopter service to fly passengers to JFK.
“We plan to make quiet, emissions-free flight an affordable, everyday reality for New Yorkers, while significantly reducing the impact of helicopter noise,” Bevirt said.
On hand for Monday's demonstration was New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
“Today, we are taking sustainability to the sky and our streets, and New Yorkers can feel the electricity in the air in our city as we electrify our heliport infrastructure,” Adams said.
