Joby applies to type certify in Australia

Joby Aviation has formally applied for type certification of its eVTOL aircraft in Australia.

Built upon a bi-lateral agreement between the FAA and Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), the application, if completed successfully, will form the basis for commercial operations of Joby’s air taxi in the country.

JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby, said: “With commercial powered-lift operations already considered in CASA’s regulatory frameworks, we’re pleased to be working with Australian authorities using a regulatory path to market that is actively being pursued by numerous countries around the world.”

Type certification is a multi-year process which sees an aircraft developer complete testing and documentation across each aircraft system to prove the aircraft is safe and ready for commercial operations. 

Australian vertiport developer Skyportz has welcomed today’s announcement. Melbourne was earmarked for early air taxi operations by Uber Elevate five years ago when it added the city to Dallas and LA for proposed launch services.  

“In Australia there is strong policy support for the development of AAM from our safety regulator, CASA, our Federal and State Governments,” said Clem Newton-Brown, CEO of Skyportz.

 “What we have been missing since the departure of Uber Elevate is a serious commitment from any of the leading electric air taxi operators to enter our market, through local certification.  This announcement by industry leader, Joby, is very exciting for the emerging local ecosystem.”

Joby has also applied to have its FAA type certificate, once received, validated by the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau and the United Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority.

To date, the company says it has completed more than 33,000 miles of all-electric flight with full-scale prototype aircraft. It was also the first to have its have its FAA certification basis published in the US Federal Register.

In June, Joby also received FAA authorisation to use ElevateOS, a suite of in-house developed software tools. Designed to enable high-tempo, on-demand air taxi operations, the firm reports it has been developing and testing these tools since acquiring Uber Elevate, the air taxi division of Uber in 2021.