Joby flies two eVTOL aircraft simultaneously in testing milestone

Two Joby air taxis (N541JX and N544JX) fly simultaneously in the skies over Marina, California. Source | Joby Aviation

Joby Aviation Inc. (Santa Cruz, Calif., U.S.) has successfully flown two of its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft simultaneously for the first time, marking another important milestone in the company’s flight testing program.

The two-aircraft flight, completed in Marina, California on May 9, is further demonstration of the maturity of Joby’s test program, and comes just two weeks after the company reached another testing landmark — successfully completing flights with a full transition from vertical to cruise flight, and back again, with a pilot onboard.

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“Our air taxi is designed, manufactured and assembled here in the U.S., with employing engineers and other experts across 40 different U.S. states,” says JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby. “With six aircraft in our test fleet, flying multiple aircraft at a time will play an important role in accelerating our certification testing and supporting our plans to carry our first passengers next year [2026].”

Joby has partnered with Delta Air Lines and Uber to bring its service to the U.S. and expects Los Angeles and New York City to be launch markets. Service is planned to start shortly after Joby receives type certification from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).  

Outside the U.S., Joby recently announced a partnership with Virgin Atlantic to bring its service to the U.K. and has partnered with ANA Holdings Inc., Japan’s largest airline, to bring its service to Japan.

Joby’s Q1 2025 Shareholder Letter celebrates a second consecutive quarter of record progress toward certifying its aircraft with the FAA and reiterated plans to start passenger operations in Dubai in early 2026. The company has completed more than 40,000 miles of test flights across multiple aircraft, including demonstration flights in New York City, Japan, and Korea.

The sixth aircraft to join Joby’s flight test program is currently undergoing final functional checks, having been powered on for the first time in April 2025. Two aircraft are positioned at Edwards Air Force Base where they are completing testing in conjunction with the company’s defense customers.