Hanneke Weitering is a writer and editor with AIN covering advanced air mobility and new flight technologies. She became an aviation journalist and joined the AIN team in the summer of 2022 after reporting on spaceflight and astronomy for six years at Space.com. After earning a bachelor’s degree in physics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, she moved to New York City to pursue a master’s degree in science, health, and environmental reporting at New York University&#039;s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. She is now based in Seattle near Boeing Field and spends her free time exploring nature in the Pacific Northwest.

Science & Technology Editor

The FAA has successfully completed a critical systems review for Joby Aviation’s eVTOL, bringing the aircraft one step closer to achieving type certification, the California-based company announced today.&nbsp;
According to Joby, the FAA conducted an in-person, multi-day day audit of <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/aircraft-program/joby-evtol">Joby’s eVTOL</a> at the company’s facilities in Marina, California, to complete the second of four systems reviews required for its type certification program.&nbsp;
Joby’s <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-03-18/joby-secures-faa-approval-first-systems-and-compliance-review">first systems review</a>&nbsp;concluded at the end of 2021 after the FAA assessed several aspects of the eVTOL aircraft, such as the flight controls, propulsion controls, and battery management. In March, Joby announced that it had submitted to the FAA its first <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-article/2022-03-23/joby-submits-evtol-safety-certification-plan-faa">“area-specific” certification plan</a>, which detailed the materials, seats, and occupant restraints inside the aircraft.&nbsp;
These reviews, along with the area-specific certification plans and means of compliance, “serve to validate the overall architecture of the aircraft and ensure that the company’s development process is on track to satisfy the FAA’s safety objectives associated with complex aircraft systems,” Joby officials said in a statement.&nbsp;
"Progress on certification is a key area of focus for this nascent sector, and we're pleased to mark our continued leadership with the successful completion of our second system review,” said Didier Papadopoulos, Joby’s head of aircraft OEM. “We’re confident that our aircraft design is on track to meet the FAA’s expectations regarding system-level safety, redundancy, and overall aircraft architecture.”
Last month, the FAA provided some insight into how it will certify Joby’s eVTOL aircraft when it <a href="https://www.futureflight.aero/news-brief/2022-11-08/faa-reveals-evtol-airworthiness-criteria-proposed-type-certification-basis">published the airworthiness criteria</a> it is using to evaluate the company’s five-seat eVTOL aircraft, which is intended to carry four passengers plus one pilot on trips of up to 150 miles (240 kilometers) on a single charge. Joby aims to operate this aircraft under both the FAA’s commercial Part 135 rules and private Part 91 rules. The company has said it expects to achieve type certification in late 2024, in time to begin commercial air taxi operations by 2025.&nbsp;

Hanneke Weitering

Joby's eVTOL air taxi is pictured during a flight test at its production facility in Marina, California. (Photo: Joby)

Joby's eVTOL Aircraft Completes Critical FAA Systems Review

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