Joby Aviation has hosted aviation regulators from around the world at the company’s manufacturing and flight testing facilities in Marina, California, as part of ongoing international certification efforts.
The week-long session, known as a ‘technology familiarization’, is a formal part of the process of validating an aircraft’s type design for use in international markets.
During the session, regulators from three countries, each of which have existing bilateral aviation safety agreements with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), engage with Joby team members and technology, as well as FAA staff, to support the continued harmonization of certification approaches for electric air taxis like the Joby aircraft around the world.
Attendees include personnel from the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority, Japan Civil Aviation Bureau, and Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority, all of which represent nations where Joby has applied for validation of its FAA type certificate, once received. The validating regulators engage with Joby and FAA teams on the certification approach being taken in novel technology areas as well as observe ongoing flight tests and system-level testing.
Didier Papadopoulos, President of Aircraft OEM at Joby, commented; “By hosting regulators from key markets around the world, we have the opportunity to share the industry-leading work we continue to do with the FAA.
“From the U.K. to Japan and Australia, Joby is working with forward-leaning nations to ensure alignment on safety and certification efforts that will enable the deployment of quiet, emissions-free aircraft in cities and communities around the world soon after we complete certification here in the US.”
Joby’s global certification strategy leverages existing bilateral aviation safety agreements between the FAA and dozens of nations around the world, including the U.K., Japan, and Australia.
In addition to this work, in South Korea, Joby continues to engage with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport and plans to participate in the country’s K-UAM Grand Challenge.
Joby also continues to engage with regulatory authorities from other markets, including the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.
The FAA published new rules for air taxi pilot training and operations in the US, calling it “the final piece of the puzzle for safely introducing these aircraft in the near term.” In February 2024, Joby revealed it had become the first electric air taxi developer to complete the third of five stages of the FAA type certification process, and, as of August 2024, the company had completed more than one-third of its work for the fourth stage.
