“This is not the Jetsons,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a new video capturing his flight on Beta Technologies’ Alia eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft. “This is actual real life.”
Duffy on Friday became the first transportation secretary to fly in an eVTOL aircraft, the Transportation Department said Monday. Duffy called the sortie a “historic flight into the future” and said eVTOL models will “fundamentally change the way people and products move.”
Duffy’s flight at Beta’s Burlington, Vermont, headquarters comes as the DOT prepares to introduce more eVTOL aircraft to American skies.
Beta is one of many manufacturers participating in the FAA’s eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP), which CEO Kyle Clark in April said could begin as soon as September. The program will span 26 states and last at least three years. The FAA will allow participants to conduct operations with real airports and air traffic controllers using precertified aircraft.
The DOT on Monday said the eIPP will test a range of potential applications, including urban air taxi services, regional passenger transport, autonomous flight, and cargo, logistics, and medical delivery. It revealed eight lead participants—state and local transportation departments that have partnered with manufacturers, operators, and infrastructure providers—in March. Beta is working with seven of them.
“From emergency organ transplants to regional air travel, these next generation aircraft have so many revolutionary applications,” Duffy said in a statement. “The future of flight is coming.”
Beta during the eIPP plans to conduct operations with both the Alia VTOL—the variant Duffy flew in last week—and CX300, its conventional takeoff and landing counterpart.
Both models are fully electric and run on Beta’s proprietary H500A engine, with specially designed propellers. The vertical takeoff version is envisioned primarily for short-haul passenger and cargo trips, while the conventional variant could serve a plethora of longer-range applications.
Among Alia’s core benefits, according to Beta, are lower operating costs due to electric power. The company has installed its charging systems at about 50 sites nationwide, with more gradually coming online. Duffy and Clark in Monday’s video said the aircraft burned $3 worth of energy during the flight.
More to Come
Duffy is not the first non-Beta employee to fly in the company’s aircraft.
In May, Republic Airways pilots conducted three days of demonstrations with the CX300, culminating in a flight into Florida’s Orlando International Airport (KMCO). That followed cold-weather demonstrations in New York and Vermont this winter, during which Republic pilots flew the aircraft 34 times over four days.
In 2025, Republic president Matt Koscal was a passenger on Beta’s historic flight into New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (KJFK). Shortly after, Beta agreed to deliver an aircraft to Republic for evaluation.
The manufacturer has similar arrangements with Bristow Group and Air New Zealand, each of which wrapped up CX300 test campaigns earlier this year. Surf Air Mobility expects to conduct the first Alia passenger flights in Hawaii, while UPS and United Therapeutics are evaluating it for logistics. Per a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing, United Therapeutics pays Beta about $5 million annually in aircraft development costs.
As of May, Beta’s test aircraft have flown 140,000 nm after surpassing 100,000 nm in late 2025. Most of its flight testing and public demonstrations have been with the conventional variant. Duffy is one of the first people outside the company to fly the VTOL model, but more could join him during the eIPP.
In addition to an organ delivery trial in Maryland and Virginia, Beta is planning cargo and medical logistics operations in New York, Vermont, Texas, Utah, Louisiana, and Florida with partners such as Republic, Bristow, and Metro Aviation. Early activities will be performed with the CX300. But the company hopes to fly passengers in the Alia VTOL by the end of the three-year program.
