GAMA Has Questions for the FAA About eVTOL Certification

Now that the FAA is changing the path for electric air taxi certification, manufacturers, industry veterans, and a former FAA official weigh in.

Thom Patterson

Wednesday, June 22, 2022 at 09:18 AM ET

Verified

Joby Aviation says certification of its tilt-rotor electric air taxi, currently under development, will not be affected by the FAA changes. [Courtesy: Joby Aviation]

Key Takeaways:

The FAA unexpectedly shifted its certification process for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft from FAR Part 21.17(a) to the "special class" process under FAR 21.17(b), after five years on the previous path.
This change has created significant uncertainty and concern for eVTOL developers regarding potential delays, increased certification workload, and challenges for international bilateral verification, with industry leaders expressing frustration over the lack of transparency.
The FAA states the change is necessary to better accommodate rapidly evolving eVTOL technology and address unique pilot training requirements for "powered lift" aircraft, while industry aims to work cooperatively to preserve previous work and minimize disruptions.

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It’s been six weeks since the FAA acknowledged it was changing a previously agreed on path to certificating electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. Now comes the hard part for developers of these new battery-enabled hovering passenger and cargo air taxis: Figuring out specifically what the changes mean and how to move forward.

The nascent eVTOL industry is backed by high-profile companies—including Boeing, Toyota, United Airlines, and Uber. Industry leaders, such as Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, and Beta Technologies, have been progressing toward FAA certification after test flying full-sized prototypes for years, some of them planning to enter service as soon as 2024.