In the wake of reports this week that the FAA intends to change the regulatory basis for certifying and approving new eVTOL aircraft, Joby Aviation says it still expects to meet its goal of being ready to launch commercial operations before the end of 2024. Briefing investors on first-quarter financial results on May 12, founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt said the public company sees no need to change its guidance on the program timeline in view of anticipated changes by the U.S. aviation safety agency that the company characterized as “administrative shifts.”
“We have a 10-year history working with the FAA and we share their vision for reaching the next level of safety,” Bevirt commented. “We are in active conversations with them about the most expedient route and what [the FAA] said this week is that all development work so far remains valid and they don’t expect the change of approach to add time to type certification and operational approval.”
