Flight completed during developmental flight
testing
Longest ‘eVTOL’ flight to date
Joby Aero Inc. (“Joby”), a California-based company developing
an all-electric air taxi for commercial passenger service, today
announced it had achieved an important milestone in the development
of its aircraft, flying a full-size prototype vehicle more than 150
miles on a single charge, including a vertical take-off and
landing.
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the full release here:
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The flight was completed at Joby’s Electric Flight Base in Big
Sur, CA earlier this month as part of the company’s ongoing flight
test campaign. The aircraft, piloted from the ground by Joby’s
Chief Test Pilot, Justin Paines, took off vertically before
transitioning to forward flight and completing 11 laps of a
predefined circuit. After more than 1 hour and 17 minutes in the
air, the aircraft landed vertically, having covered a total
distance of 154.6 statute miles.
Commenting on the milestone, JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of
Joby, said: “We’ve achieved something that many thought impossible
with today’s battery technology.
“By doing so we’ve taken the first step towards making
convenient, emissions-free air travel between places like San
Francisco and Lake Tahoe, Houston and Austin, or Los Angeles and
San Diego an everyday reality.”
Joby’s prototype aircraft uses commercially available lithium
ion batteries that have been adapted for aerospace use. An 811 NMC
cathode and a graphite anode cell were selected, following internal
testing, to deliver the optimal trade-off between the specific
energy required to fly the aircraft 150 miles, the specific power
to take-off and land vertically and the cycle life to deliver an
affordable service. We have demonstrated in the lab that this
battery is capable of more than 10,000 of our expected nominal
flight cycles.
The team developing Joby’s energy system is led by Jon Wagner,
Head of Powertrain and Electronics, who previously led battery
engineering at Tesla. Commenting on the achievement, he said:
“Since the day I joined Joby four years ago, we’ve worked hard to
maximize the energy efficiency of this aircraft and prove what we
have always known to be possible with today’s battery technology.
With the right cell chemistry and a lot of hard work across the
entire engineering team, we’ve been able to create a remarkably
efficient aircraft that can make the most of today’s commercially
available batteries.”
Justin Paines, a former Royal Air Force test pilot who helped
develop the controls for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter before
joining Joby as its Chief Test Pilot, added: “We’ve been building
up to this for several months now, flying progressively longer
sorties.
“As we’ve extended the range, we’ve been able to identify
modifications to the aircraft that improve efficiency and, for the
final few tests, we were able to upgrade the landing gear on our
prototype aircraft to one with a drag profile more representative
of what we expect to see on our production aircraft.
“While we still have plenty more testing to do, achieving this
milestone is an important validation of our technology and I’m
incredibly proud to have played a small part in what is, to our
knowledge, the longest all-electric eVTOL flight performed to
date.”
Joby’s aircraft is expected to start commercial passenger
service in 2024, transporting a pilot and four passengers at speeds
of up to 200 mph.
The company is working towards certifying its aircraft with the
Federal Aviation Administration, having already agreed on a “G-1”
certification basis and been awarded a US Air Force Airworthiness
Approval.
About Joby
Joby Aero, Inc. is a California-headquartered transportation
company developing an all-electric vertical take-off and landing
aircraft which it intends to operate as part of a fast, quiet, and
convenient air taxi service beginning in 2024. The aircraft, which
has a range of 150 miles on a single charge, can transport a pilot
and four passengers at speeds of up to 200 mph. It is designed to
help reduce urban congestion and accelerate the shift to
sustainable modes of transit. Founded in 2009, Joby employs more
than 800 people, with offices in Santa Cruz, San Carlos, and
Marina, California, as well as Washington D.C. and Munich, Germany.
To learn more, visit www.jobyaviation.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This Press Release contains certain forward-looking statements
within the meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to
the proposed transaction between RTP and Joby Aviation. These
forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words
“believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” in
“intend,” “strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “may,”
“should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely
result,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are
predictions, projections and other statements about future events
that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a
result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could
cause actual future events to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements in this Press Release, including but not
limited to: (i) the risk that the transaction may not be completed
in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely affect the price
of RTP’s securities, (ii) the risk that the transaction may not be
completed by RTP’s business combination deadline and the potential
failure to obtain an extension of the business combination deadline
if sought by RTP, (iii) the failure to satisfy the conditions to
the consummation of the transaction, including the adoption of the
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of February 23, 2021 (the
“Merger Agreement”), by and among RTP, Joby and RTP Merger Sub
Inc., a Delaware corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary
of RTP, by the shareholders of RTP, the satisfaction of the minimum
trust account amount following redemptions by RTP’s public
shareholders and the receipt of certain governmental and regulatory
approvals, (iv) the lack of a third party valuation in determining
whether or not to pursue the transaction, (v) the inability to
complete the PIPE investment in connection with the transaction,
(vi) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that
could give rise to the termination of the Merger Agreement, (vii)
the effect of the announcement or pendency of the transaction on
Joby Aviation’s business relationships, operating results and
business generally, (viii) risks that the proposed transaction
disrupts current plans and operations of Joby Aviation and
potential difficulties in Joby Aviation employee retention as a
result of the transaction, (ix) the outcome of any legal
proceedings that may be instituted against Joby Aviation or against
RTP related to the Merger Agreement or the transaction, (x) the
ability to maintain the listing of RTP’s securities on a national
securities exchange, (xi) the price of RTP’s securities may be
volatile due to a variety of factors, including changes in the
competitive and highly regulated industries in which RTP plans to
operate or Joby Aviation operates, variations in operating
performance across competitors, changes in laws and regulations
affecting RTP’s or Joby Aviation’s business and changes in the
combined capital structure, (xii) the ability to implement business
plans, forecasts, and other expectations after the completion of
the transaction, and identify and realize additional opportunities,
and (xiii) the risk of downturns and a changing regulatory
landscape in the highly competitive aviation industry. The
foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully
consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and
uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of RTP’s
registration on Form S-1 (File No. 333-248497), the registration
statement on Form S-4 discussed above and other documents filed by
RTP from time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and
address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause
actual events and results to differ materially from those contained
in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak
only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put
undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and RTP and Joby
Aviation assume no obligation and do not intend to update or revise
these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events, or otherwise. Neither RTP nor Joby
Aviation gives any assurance that either RTP or Joby Aviation or
the combined company will achieve its expectations.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210727005641/en/
For Joby Investors: investors@jobyaviation.com
+1-831-201-6006
Media: press@jobyaviation.com
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