Joby, Clay Lacy Aviation partner to install first electric air taxi charger in Southern California

Joby partners with Clay Lacy Aviation to install Southern California's first electric air taxi charger at John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Orange County, CA. The installation of new electrical infrastructure will support Joby's Global Electric Aviation Charging System and comes as part of Clay Lacy's planned $100 million redevelopment plan for its FBO terminal at SNA and completion is expected in mid-2025. The GEACS charging interface is in use at Joby's flight test center in Marina, California and at Edwards Air Force Base, which received its first eVTOL delivery in September. The infrastructure supports the eVTOL operations of all of the electric aircraft under development today and includes Joby's emission-free air taxi. Joby's aircraft will be used on routes of up to 100 miles and can carry a pilot and up to four passengers at speeds of up to 200 miles per hour. The air taxi travel option will offer passengers high-speed mobility without in-flight emissions and lower noise. The eVTOL aircraft is significantly quieter than helicopters flying today.RELATED STORIES:Joby completes first-ever electric air taxi flight in New York CityJoby delivers first eVTOL to USAF base The charger to be installed at SNA will establish the site as part of the air taxi network, expected to be the first to launch in the U.S. In 2022 Joby announced it was working with Delta Air Lines to deliver seamless airport trips for customers in different locations nationwide, including Los Angeles. "Today's announcement marks a key moment on the path to delivering our air taxi service in the Greater Los Angeles area," Joby Founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt said. "We're taking concrete steps to ensure the right infrastructure is in place to support our future service and we're grateful to be working with an industry pioneer like Clay Lacy Aviation to lead the way on bringing sustainable aviation to Southern California." In 2023, Joby completed the first-ever flight of an electric air taxi in New York City, another launch market, coinciding the cities announcement of plans to electrify the Downtown Manhattan Heliport. "The charging technology we have developed is optimized to support our whole industry, from air taxis delivering short-range city flights to more conventional electric aircraft flying longer distances," Bevirt said. "Joby made the specifications for the universal charging interface freely available to the wider industry in November 2023, to help accelerate the transition to clean flight. We're therefore very pleased to see it being adopted in this key market." The Clay Lacy FBO in development at SNA will be the first in the globe to be Gold-certified by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure and reinforces the company commitment to leading in sustainability in aviation. "Since our founding more than 50 years ago, Clay Lacy has been committed to improving lives for our community, employees, and clients; leading the industry on safety and service while taking action to reduce emissions in both our ground and air operations," Clay Lacy Aviation SVP of Strategy and Sustainability Scott Cutshall said. "We're excited to be working with Joby to install Southern California's first air taxi charger and we look forward to the greater convenience it will bring to the Orange County community without additional noise or emissions."