Advanced Air Mobility Modern Flying News

Joby Acquires Autonomous Flight Developer Xwing

The electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi manufacturer in the future will look to integrate autonomy onto its flagship aircraft.

Tuesday, June 04, 2024 at 02:40 PM ET

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Joby’s eVTOL air taxi will initially be flown by an onboard pilot, but the manufacturer is exploring autonomous operations in the future. [Courtesy: Joby Aviation]

Key Takeaways:

Joby Aviation acquired Xwing's autonomy division and its Superpilot autonomous flight software to accelerate its long-term vision of operating self-flying air taxi services.
The acquisition reinforces Joby's belief that autonomy is crucial for scaling advanced air mobility operations, improving safety, achieving cost-competitiveness, and addressing potential pilot shortages.
Xwing's Superpilot technology is a proven system with extensive flight experience and has achieved FAA project designation for commercial cargo and military airworthiness.
This strategic move is also expected to strengthen Joby's ability to fulfill its contracts with the U.S. Department of Defense, which seeks autonomous solutions for logistics and pilot safety.

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Joby Aviation is one of many electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi manufacturers that predicts autonomy will be the driver of ubiquity for advanced air mobility (AAM) services. And it’s putting its money where its mouth is.

Joby on Tuesday announced it acquired the autonomy division of Xwing, the developer of autonomous gate-to-gate flight software Superpilot, as it looks ahead to a transition to self-flying air taxi services. The manufacturer plans to initially operate the aircraft with onboard pilots and has a partnership with Delta Air Lines to launch commercial service as early as next year, beginning in New York and Los Angeles.

Jack Daleo

Jack is a staff writer covering advanced air mobility, including everything from drones to unmanned aircraft systems to space travel—and a whole lot more. He spent close to two years reporting on drone delivery for FreightWaves, covering the biggest news and developments in the space and connecting with industry executives and experts. Jack is also a basketball aficionado, a frequent traveler and a lover of all things logistics.