Joby said it hoped to fly in the UAE in 2025. Credit: Joby Aviation

eVTOL and UAM developer Joby Aviation has signed a wide-ranging Memorandum of Understanding with authorities in Abu Dhabi to “lay the groundwork” for a scaleable air taxi service in the Emirate. 

Signed at an event in the United Arab Emirates, the MoU is intended to show the “breadth of support available to Joby” from the Abu Dhabi Government. 

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The signatories along with Joby were the Department of Municipalities and Transport – Abu Dhabi (DMT), the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (DED) and the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi). 

Joby holds exclusive rights to develop an air taxi service in Abu Dhabi, and the new agreement could lead to the first inter-emirate agreement to provide the service between the city and Dubai, the emirate directly south of Abu Dhabi. 

The Abu Dhabi agreement is in addition to the work ongoing with the  General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of the UAE to develop air taxi and UAM regulations. However, any inter-emirate service would require additional approval from the GCAA. 

Joby said it “expects” to begin services in the UAE in 2025.  

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JoeBen Bevirt, Joby Aviation’s founder and CEO said: “[This] agreement demonstrates the incredible momentum there is behind the adoption of clean flight across the UAE. We’re looking forward to delivering a fantastic experience for our future customers in Abu Dhabi and we’re excited to be unlocking the potential for zero-emissions flight between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. 

“We’re grateful for the support and collaboration of our governmental partners and the entire ecosystem in Abu Dhabi and we remain deeply impressed by their commitment to building out a world-class aviation ecosystem in the Emirate.”

“Through the Emirate’s  Smart and Autonomous Vehicles Industry (SAVI) cluster and this visionary partnership with Joby, we are not only laying the foundation for cutting-edge air taxi services but also shaping the future of transportation; igniting a journey where the sky is no longer the limit, but the beginning of endless possibilities,” Mohamed Ali Al Shorafa, chairman of DMT, added. 

“We look forward to seeing their innovative aircrafts take-off from the UAE capital, offering the world a glimpse, through Abu Dhabi, of what the future of mobility looks like.”