Virgin Atlantic have announced a partnership with California-based Joby Aviation, with a view to launching an electric air taxi service in the UK.
The partnership was born out of Joby’s existing relation ship with Delta Air Lines, which owns a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic. In 2022, Joby signed a multi-city partnership with Delta to deliver a home-to-airport air taxi service for their customers.
The plan for the UK is to offer zero-emission, short-range journeys from Virgin Atlantic’s hubs at Heathrow and Manchester Airport.
It is envisaged that the aircraft will be used on routes of up to 100 miles, so the Heathrow hub would provided services as far as Birmingham to the north, Norwich to the east and Brighton to the south.
The Manchester hub would serve as far afield as Liverpool, Hull and Nottingham.
The air taxi can carry a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200 mph, meaning Manchester to Leeds would take just 15 minutes.
The first full scale demonstrator of Joby’s electric air taxi took to the skies in 2017 and in 2019, a pre-production prototype began a flight testing program.
In 2023 the company announced plans to build a production site in Dayton, Ohio, which will be capable of delivering up to 500 aircraft per year when fully developed.
Over time, Joby plans to establish a network of landing sites throughout the UK. At launch, with pricing comparable to ‘existing premium ground ridesharing services’.
Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, said: ‘As a leader in sustainability and with innovation firmly in our DNA, we are delighted to be partnering with Joby to bring short-haul, zero-emission flight to airports and cities throughout the UK.
‘Our strategic partnership combines Joby’s expertise in design, engineering and technology with the power of Virgin Atlantic’s brand and award-winning customer experience. We look forward to working together to bring Joby’s service to the UK and to deliver greater connectivity for our customers.’
JoeBen Bevirt, Founder and CEO of Joby, commented: ‘Virgin Atlantic’s commitment to delighting its customers reflects our experience with Delta and we couldn’t imagine a better partner to work with in the UK. Together, we are committed to delivering faster options for mobility across the country, including for Virgin Atlantic and Delta customers as they head to the airport or move between UK towns and cities.’
Photo: Joby Aviation