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Joby Aviation and NASA have completed a series of air traffic simulations to evaluate how air taxi operations will integrate into the national airspace, including at busy airports. These successful simulations show how the industry can utilize existing air traffic control tools and procedures with the eventual launch of commercial eVTOL passenger services.
The simulations were jointly developed by engineers with Joby and NASA after a multi-year airspace study. The study tested scenarios with numerous eVTOL aircraft per hour flying in and out of the busy and complicated airspace in the Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) region. In June 2022, Joby and NASA shared the results of the study, done in collaboration with the FAA, which developed five use cases for operations in the region, describing how Joby aircraft navigate between the vertiports within the region with the high volume of air traffic.
The simulations took place at NASA's Future Flight Central, a virtual tower facility with a 360-degree view of a real-time simulation of an airport. A team of NASA and Joby engineers, as well as pilots and air traffic controllers, simulated traffic patterns at Dallas Love Field (DAL) and DFW airports to represent a busy airspace. During the simulation, teams of controllers virtually tested the ability to integrate up to 120 eVTOL operations, either arrivals or departures, per hour from DFW's Central Terminal Area, while operating alongside the airport's existing traffic. Up to 45 simulated eVTOL aircraft were in the air in DFW's Class B airspace during the simulation testing.
Using the scenarios developed by the teams of NASA and Joby engineers, the controllers used the various highly structured routes and procedures currently used in the busy, low-altitude airspace region, including Letters of Agreement and dedicated traffic controller positions to scale the air taxi operations without disrupting existing traffic.
Engineers from NASA and Joby hosted representatives from the FAA and National Air Traffic Controllers to observe the simulated testing. NASA will publish a complete analysis of the simulated results next year and share data with the FAA and the industry.
"Working alongside our NASA colleagues, we have now demonstrated in a real-world simulation how air taxi operations can take place in today's airspace system, alongside active airport traffic, using tools and procedures currently available to air traffic controllers," Joby Air Taxi Product Lead Tom Prevot said. "These successful simulations were made possible by years of careful planning and collaboration between two organizations committed to redefining what is possible, and we're proud to be paving the way towards the scaled commercialization of air taxis in the National Airspace System."