Joby Takes Over Uber Elevate’s Urban Air Taxi Plans

Joby Aviation is acquiring Uber Elevate, taking on its ambitious plans to launch commercial air taxi services using eVTOL aircraft by 2023. Details of the purchase price and terms were not disclosed in an announcement made late yesterday.

As part of the deal, parent company Uber Technologies said it will invest a further $75 million in California-based Joby. Uber also disclosed it invested $50 million in Joby during a January 2020 Series C financing round, for a total of $125 million. Overall, Joby has now raised $820 million in funding. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, subject to regulatory review and completion of closing conditions.

Joby and Uber will integrate their respective services into each other’s applications in a move that they say will enable “seamless integration between ground and air travel for future customers.” Under plans being developed by Uber Elevate since 2016, the proposed “aerial ridesharing” services are expected to begin in Dallas and/or Los Angeles in 2023.

Uber’s long-anticipated divestiture of Uber Elevate and the planned Uber Air service call into question the future involvement of the other named program partners: Aurora Flight Sciences (a Boeing subsidiary), Bell, Embraer, Hyundai, Jaunt Air Mobility, Overair (formerly Karem Aircraft), and Pipistrel. 

This story is from FutureFlight, a resource developed by AIN to provide objective, independent coverage and analysis of new aviation technology, including electric aircraft developments and advanced air mobility.

GE Aviation Digital Joins Software Business

GE Aviation’s Digital Group has joined GE’s software business, GE Digital. The group fashions digital solutions that address flight safety, fuel, asset records, and network operations for commercial airlines and business jet operators that increase aircraft readiness and decrease the sustainment cycle time and sustainment costs. GE Digital’s aviation software facilitates the collection of full flight data, manages compliance for leased asset records, and provides advanced analytics for fuel management, operational safety, and fleet optimization.

This solution enables aircraft operators to address maintenance issues faster, make better decisions regarding real-time fleet health, and increase fleet reliability. These predictive maintenance capabilities drive reduced operational costs through analytics-based solutions that take maintenance from unplanned to planned.  

GE Digital CEO Pat Byrne said the group is “well-positioned to provide digital solutions across the aviation industry. They provide data-driven insights for commercial airlines and business jet operators to help aircraft operators to reduce operational costs, empower crews, improve passenger experience, and get mission-ready. With the addition of aviation as a target market for GE Digital, we are strengthening our overall industrial software business.”

Aerion AS2 Backlog Tops $6.5B with Avion Pacific Deal

Aerion Supersonic has secured the first commitment for its AS2 supersonic business jet (SSBJ) from China under a marketing and sales agreement with Avion Pacific that covers multiple aircraft and pushes the value of the order backlog of the Mach 1.4 jet to more than $6.5 billion.

While announcing the agreement this morning, Aerion did not disclose the number of aircraft involved but the deal is among orders that have helped significantly push up the value of the backlog this year. The company's backlog was in the $3 billion range just six months ago.

Aerion plans to begin assembly of the AS2 in 2023, with the first flight coming in 2025 and market entry in the 2027 timeframe. The company envisions building 300 of the SSBJs in its first decade of production. Avion Pacific will be among the first customers to take delivery in the expected 2027 service entry date.

This latest order was part of a larger strategic marketing and sales agreement between the two companies, one that Aerion said opens a gateway to the Asia market for the AS2. Avion Pacific will be a preferred partner and collaborate with Aerion on Asia-Pacific market intelligence and support sales and marketing efforts to help Aerion establish a presence in the region.

TallyHo App Offers Operators Menu of Service Providers

TallyHo Apps has launched the beta version of its smartphone and tablet application of the same name, which provides information on more than 60 general aviation service providers offering more than 330 service types at or near some of the busiest airports in the U.S. The free app, available at the Apple App Store and Google Play, has already been downloaded by 1,000 general aviation users.

Users of the app can locate service providers and communicate with, assess, rate, and review them. Service providers listed on the app include airframe and engine maintenance, avionics, paint and interior, aircraft detailing, and catering, as well as ownership services such as aviation attorneys, accountants, brokers, and consultants.

The app is supported by a monthly or annual subscription fee from service providers. A companion app allows service providers to input their information, establish accounts, pay subscription fees, and list capabilities.

“TallyHo provides a very interactive and engaging experience while allowing service providers to highlight their most defining features to attract and retain new customers,” said TallyHo Apps founder and CEO Byron Severson. “TallyHo helps [owners and operators] connect with service providers as quickly as possible and facilitates their informed decision making. We expect to continue rapidly growing our subscriber base and to provide an awareness of a broad array of service options wherever an aircraft might operate.”

MEBAA Show Now Canceled; Organizer Plans for 2022 Event

The Middle East & North Africa Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) today canceled its biennial MEBAA Show, which in September was postponed from early this month to late February in the hopes that the Covid-19 outbreak would ease. “Due to concerns related to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and international travel restrictions imposed across numerous countries around the world, we believe this tough decision is in the best interests of the health and safety of exhibitors, visitors, contractors and staff,” MEBAA founding and executive chairman Ali Ahmed Alnaqbi said in today's announcement about the cancellation.

The regional business aviation show was originally set to take place this week (December 8 to 10) at the Dubai World Central airshow site and three months ago was rescheduled for Feb. 22 to 24, 2021, at the same venue. According to Alnaqbi, the next MEBAA Show will now be held in Dubai at the next regularly scheduled cycle, meaning December 2022.

“For the 2022 edition, we promise to come back bigger and better, bringing new initiatives that will add even more value to your participation at the MEBAA Show,” he added. “These will include access to hours of thought-leadership seminars along with a pre-arranged meetings program to facilitate connection and networking between visitors and exhibitors.”

Otto Aviation Launches Zero-emissions Aircraft

Otto Aviation, which is developing a six-seat, aero-diesel powered private aircraft, known as the Celera 500L, announced yesterday during ICAO’s Green Innovations webcast that it will also create a zero-emissions version of the high-efficiency aircraft. The company expects the initial conventionally-powered version of the aircraft—which features a portly, but laminar-flow-friendly fuselage—to enter service in 2025.

“We’re pleased to announce the development of a zero-emissions version of the aircraft by 2027, using either battery-electric or hydrogen power,” said David Bogue, the airframer’s chief technology officer, adding it is designing the single-engine pusher, which is powered by a 500-hp RED A03 diesel engine, with the ability be retrofit to a zero-emissions powertrain. “We’re designing the baseline aircraft to be compatible with either until the combination of performance and infrastructure clarifies which is preferable.”

While current battery technology is not yet where it needs to be to meet the company’s needs, “We’re optimistic that improvements to specific energy, cycles and charge rates would enable battery power on future aircraft, especially in the long term,” said Bogue.

The company noted it has achieved more than 30 test flights on the aircraft, which it claims will have a maximum cruise speed of 391 knots and a range exceeding 3,900 nm while offering a stand-up cabin and fuel economy of 16 to 22 nm per gallon.

Royal Flying Doctor Service Adds Engineering, Mx

Seeking what it said was greater visibility and accountability of its engineering and maintenance, the Queensland section of the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) in Australia has brought that activity in-house, the organization announced. As a result, 18 staff from its former maintenance and engineering provider, Hawker Pacific, joined RFDS and are working from one of its five bases.

“While Hawker Pacific [has] been our sole maintenance provider for the past three years, [it has] a long history with the RFDS, reaching back over 40 years, and we will ensure this relationship extends well into the future,” said RFDS Queensland engineering operations manager Adam Clegg.

Clegg explained that the move gives the organization more visibility of engineering and maintenance functions that it can measure from a performance standpoint. It also will allow RFDS Queensland to identify greater efficiencies in the future.

“In-house engineering operations will ultimately allow us to also drive a better product through the use of our safety and quality management systems,” he added. “We’re extremely grateful to Hawker Pacific for [its] dedication to the needs of our fleet and the greater organization, and I welcome our new engineering and maintenance staff into the RFDS family.”

Volocopter To Launch eVTOL Taxi Services in Singapore

Volocopter is preparing to launch air taxi services with its Volocity eVTOL aircraft in Singapore by the end of 2023. The German company said today that it will work with the Economic Development Board of Singapore and the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) and has formed a local company called Volocopter Asia Holding. 

Over the next three years, Volocopter will recruit a team of 50 pilots, engineers, operations specialists, and business managers. By 2026, it expects to have grown its team to 200 people and at that point will be operating a network of routes across the Southeast Asian city-state.

The first services in Singapore are expected to be sightseeing flights along the southern coast, giving good views of the Marina Bay skyline. Further services might include cross-border flights into neighboring Malaysia. However, the two-seat, all-electric aircraft will only have an initial range of around 22 miles.

Before launching operations, Volocopter will need to complete regulatory approvals. The company hopes this process will be facilitated by last week’s agreement between the CAAS and EASA to allow validation of type certification for eVTOL aircraft to be done concurrently and in close cooperation.