NASA's 1st Testing of Air Taxis
Joby Aviation's e-VTOL Being Tested by NASA
NASA's Ultimate Goal: Safely Accelerate Use of Air Taxis
NASA has started testing a future air taxi for use to ferry passengers and cargo, particularly in big, congested cities. The vehicle is a six rotor, all electric e-VTOL (electric, vertical take off and landing vehicle) developed by startup company Joby Aviation of California. This particular aircraft is designed to be as quiet as possible in order to operate in busy cities and relieve traffic congestion without a lot of noise pollution. Joby plans to put its flying taxis into commercial operation in 2024. NASA's ultimate goal in initiating its testing program is to safely accelerate the use of flying taxis in the US.
Air Noise Pollution Tests
The tests are being conducted by NASA's Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) group, which has launched a national campaign for the development of advanced air mobility vehicles. During the testing, NASA engineers are particularly focused on measuring the noise produced by the e-VTOLS. They hope to establish a noise threshold for future regulations governing the use of the vehicles in cities. Joby's e-VTOLs are the first flying taxis to be tested by NASA. NASA says the program is critical to providing scientific understanding and to establishing public acceptance of the urban air mobility vehicles.
How Does the Testing Work?
NASA is using 50 pressure ground plate microphones, placed in a grid array formation, to precisely measure sound emissions during different phases of the flying taxi flights. NASA will use the data to compare Joby e-VTOLs' noise levels to that of drones, helicopters and other types of aircraft. NASA's goal is to safely move forward the widespread use of e-VTOL's. As mentioned, Joby hopes to go into commercial operation in 2024. In fall 2021, their flying taxes are capable of flying at speeds of 200 mph and have a range of 150 miles on a charge. NASA is helping to advance the future of travel by e-VTOL's move forward by initiating its new testing program.
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