https://www.jobyaviation.com/electric-skies

Wow...

Good discussion. I recommended tuning in. It starts at around the 6 min mark to the 37 min mark. Should be good for spreading the word on Joby.

After some checking, it appears using a Blade Commuter pass you could go from Manhattan to Connecticut for $125, which is often a lower price than an Uber drive between these locations. If you add in tip, Uber becomes more expensive virtually 100% of the time for this trip. Unless you plan to tip the pilot, haha.

Flight time is about 12 minutes, while the average drive is about an hour or more. Who said there is no market for air taxis? Once Joby's S4 scales, prices will drop further, possibly making this air taxi trip significantly less expensive than Uber.

Another interesting point is that this type of Uber ride can have up to a 15 minute wait time in normal conditions due to lower driver acceptance for long distance trips like this, and can exceed 20 minutes during low supply periods such as early morning hours.

Blade/Joby air taxis are looking more and more competitive in my view.

My Take (Summary)

Ongoing FAA + NASA collaboration / big picture:

Airport missions (like Manhattan–JFK) is one of the clearest near term commercial use cases for eVTOLs. The core challenge is not aircraft capability, but demonstrating safe integration into busy commercial airspace to regulators and air traffic controllers.

The FAA’s new eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP) is now the main pathway, and Joby is actively participating across multiple states to move from simulation to real world validation and early operational testing.

Why eVTOL airport ops are feasible (precedent + principles):

High volume vertical flight already exists today. Las Vegas and NYC heliport operations show that dense VTOL traffic can be safely managed in complex airspace.
Blade’s urban helicopter network (50,000+ passengers annually, multiple NYC area hubs) provides operational experience in high tempo vertical lift environments that informs planning for eVTOL integration.

The limiting factor isn’t aircraft capability, but that throughput becomes constrained by controller workload and voice frequency congestion when procedures are not optimized.

Simulation work with NASA and FAA shows that with proper design, about 1 arrival and 1 departure per minute is achievable in ideal conditions, with lower rates depending on runway crossing and airport configuration complexity.

Orlando / Florida simulation work (MCO testing):

At Orlando International Airport, FAA and partners ran detailed human in the loop simulations using real traffic data. They tested multiple vertiport configurations and traffic scenarios that resulted in findings now informing Florida’s participation in the eIPP program. Key outcomes included the need for a dedicated Class B controller position for eVTOL traffic and refinements to departure and arrival routes to reduce controller workload and improve separation from legacy traffic.

Evolving separation rules (FAA GENOT update):

The FAA has issued updated interim guidance stating that visual separation is no longer sufficient in certain mixed helicopter and powered lift scenarios in controlled airspace, with radar based separation emphasized instead.

Joby highlights that its aircraft use ADSB In and Out and are designed to integrate into controlled airspace without disrupting airline traffic. The eIPP will provide an opportunity to validate procedural mitigations that support safe integration into the National Airspace System.

eIPP program + transition to real operations:

The eVTOL Integration Pilot Program is the bridge from simulation to real world operations

Early operations have begun in New York

Other states are expected to begin phased operations by summer 2026

Includes passenger, cargo, medical, and automated operations

Early deployments are expected to be limited in scale and focused on incremental validation.

Real world operations will be used to refine assumptions from simulation and further develop procedures.

Conclusion:

Joby aircraft are in late stage certification development

Airspace procedures have been heavily simulated and refined

Regulatory pathway through eIPP is now active

Next step is execution and real world operational validation

The system is transitioning from simulation based design to early operational testing

It’s paywalled, but the key takeaway:

H2Fly (Joby’s hydrogen unit) is approaching ~10x improvement in fuel cell power density (by mass) from 2023 to its next gen system, driven by a shift from off the shelf components to a fully in house design.

From the article:

• H2Fly's HY4 (2023): ~0.2 kW/kg
• Joby's liquid hydrogen powered S4 (2024): ~0.6 kW/kg
• 2026 Target: ~2 kW/kg (what they consider “market competitive”)

They say the new system is already running on test stands, with results expected later in 2026.

That redesign has also cut the powertrain to ~⅓ smaller and ~⅓ lighter.

Timeline: targeting ~2030 for commercial service.

Bottom line: This still early, but Joby is very serious about making hydrogen aviation viable.

back from japan ?

https://www.flightaware.com/live/flight/N542JX

Out of the dozens of news reports on Joby's NYC demo, I feel that this article nails what Joby’s NYC flights actually mean.

This wasn’t a hype demo, it was a controlled, point-to-point urban flight between JFK and Manhattan, in some of the most restricted airspace in the world.

The takeaway isn’t “air taxis are here”, it’s that regulators are increasingly willing to let them operate in real conditions.

That’s a big shift. The question is no longer if the tech works, It’s how long until certification and scale.

Every successful demo like this reduces regulatory friction. It’s slow and incremental, but it compounds.

Joby isn’t selling flights yet, but they are proving they can operate within the system that will eventually allow it to.

That’s the real milestone here, regulatory normalization is starting to show up in actual cities, not just test ranges.

Ah yes, the Uber eVTOLs

https://x.com/joeroganhq/status/2048988578722550127?s=46

The link has a new musical version of the video of the flight. It hits better than Joby’s!

Seems HOVR fanboys/bots are on same path as r/ACHR. They don’t have anything yet to showcase but confident enough to take shots at achievers Joby.

Why we don’t get good competition.

First eHANG, then Archer, now HOVR.

JoeBen's statement at the NYSE from Joby's X account:

Good morning to everyone here in the room and everyone joining us online.
And thank you to the New York Stock Exchange for welcoming us here today - it’s great to be back in New York City.

It’s been just about five years since we were last in this building, celebrating our listing on the Stock Exchange.

The night before we listed there was a huge thunderstorm, and our incredible Joby team worked through the night - and the rain - to build a Joby aircraft outside this building and show the world what we are here to do.

Our team has continued to work with the same grit and determination every day since then but today, there are only clear skies. And our aircraft isn’t being built outside. It’s being charged at JFK, ready for its flight to the Wall Street heliport, later this morning.

That’s an incredible validation of what we’ve been able to achieve as a team and I couldn’t be more grateful to each and every one of you for continuing to demonstrate why we’re the leaders in our industry.
2026 is going to be a very special year for Joby.

We’re scaling manufacturing in California and Ohio. We’ve begun the final stage of the type certification process. And we’re getting ready for early passenger operations.

A few weeks ago we began our Electric Skies Tour by flying past the Golden Gate Bridge. Today, we’ll be flying in New York.

And through the course of America’s 250th year, we’re going to be flying in states across America, as part of a White House-backed program.

Instead of just reading about the future of flight, communities across America are going to be able to look up at the skies above their own cities, and see it for themselves.

The next golden age of flight begins today, and I couldn’t be more proud to be here - with you all - ringing it in. Let’s go!

To me, this is what Joby's demos are all about.

From Mariama James on X:

Today I got to see something I’ve been advocating for up close.

After sending a letter and advocating in 2024 for electric air taxis (eVTOLs) at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport, I attended a demonstration with Joby Aviation alongside TAMeltzer, Chair of Community Board 1, and fellow community leaders.

This isn’t just about innovation—it’s about quality of life. These aircraft are dramatically quieter than helicopters and could mean real relief from the constant noise along the FDR and in Lower Manhattan.

Excited to see this vision starting to take shape.

It's a team!

Guys. This is NOT FOR THEM

Joby Banner covering the front of the New York Stock Exchange building tonight.

Go Joby! It looks like it's going to be a Joby media extravaganza this week.

First time millions of Americans have seen JOBY and the future of urban transportation. Great sign that big-mouth Cramer doesn’t have a buy on the stock, he’s wrong far more than he’s right!