EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (KERO) — A new era of flight is taking off at Edwards Air Force Base.
The U.S. Air Force is partnering with the aviation company Joby, which delivered the first eVTOL aircraft in the U.S. to Edwards Air Force Base on Monday.
“It’s great lookin’ isn’t it?" U.S. Air Force Col. Douglas Wickert said while standing in front of the aircraft. "You look at the airplane and you know you’re lookin’ at the future.”
eVTOL stands for electric vehicle take-off and landing, and this aircraft is an air taxi for commercial use.
Testing will take place at Edwards to demonstrate cargo and passenger transportation among other maneuvers, and will be operated by Joby and U.S. Air Force personnel.
“Today is a culmination of a very long period of work," Paul Sciarra, Joby's Executive Chairman, said. "Our partnership with the D.O.D. (Department of Defense) started more than seven years ago. They were involved in some of the early design of the vehicle, the sub-scale testing of this aircraft so now to be delivering the first aircraft to this customer is exciting. It’s exciting for Joby and I think it’s exciting for the industry as a whole.”
The announcement was part of Joby’s $131 million contract with the U.S. Air Force.
The company's work with the Department of Defense represents a potential contract value of $163 million, which is believed to be the largest in the industry.
A second aircraft is set to be delivered to Edwards Air Force Base early next year, and is part of up to nine aircraft for the U.S. Air Force Base and other federal agencies.
“The fact that it’s being tested here first just makes natural sense," Wickert said. "This is where so many aviation firsts have happened.”
The joint venture will also include NASA to research how eVTOLs will fit into the crowded airspace across the nation.
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