Dubai air taxi service ‘could start by December 2025’

Dubai: Air taxi service in Dubai could start as early as in December 2025, a top executive of Joby Aviation, the company developing electric air taxis for commercial passenger service in association with the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai, told Gulf News on Monday.

Tyler Trerotola, general manager for the Middle East, Joby Aviation, said the company was “shooting for early operations as soon as December next year” even though the agreement with the RTA is for launching the operations in early 2026.

He was speaking to Gulf News on the sidelines of a press conference on the inaugural day of the 30th edition of the Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) World Congress taking place in Dubai from September 16 to 20.

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The company had previously said that it could be ready to begin commercial operations as soon as 2025, though certification by the US Federal Aviation Administration and regulators in other countries is still pending. However, last month, its CEO JoeBen Bevirt announced that the company was aiming to start commercial services of its battery-powered air taxis in Dubai from late next year.

The top executive of the company’s regional office who confirmed December as the new launch date said the “future is closer” at the beginning of his presentation about the air taxi service during the press conference.

To and from vertiports

Later, Trerotola also revealed plans for implementing a first and last mile transportation service for the air taxi passengers.

“We’ll be integrated with other first and last mile providers such as Uber, so that everything is a seamless journey. You order in the app, a car picks you up, but you also have the option to walk to the vertiport [vertical airport] or get there however you prefer,” he said.

He said the option works just like how you would call a Uber. “So from home, they [passengers] click a button saying here is where they are.”

Then a Uber car would drop the passengers at the vertiport of their choice. “Then they get on the aircraft, fly to their destination vertiport, and another car picks them up from there,” Trerotola explained.

“We are still evaluating those riders,” said Trerotola while giving an update about its partnership for the first and last mile providers.

Joby Aviation partnered with Uber in 2019 to develop urban air mobility solutions using Joby's eVTOL aircraft. In 2020, Joby acquired Uber Elevate, with Uber investing $75 million in the company. The collaboration aims to integrate Joby’s aircraft into Uber’s app for future aerial ride-hailing services.

Air operator process

Meanwhile, Joby Aviation last week announced that it had taken the first step towards becoming a certified air taxi operator in the UAE.

At the International Civil Aviation Organisation’s Advanced Air Mobility Summit in Montreal, JoeBen Bevirt met with the Director General of the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi to present Joby’s Letter of Intent for its Air Operator Certificate application.

Issued by the GCAA, the Air Operator Certificate is required to operate commercial air transport in the UAE. Joby said it will follow a five-stage application process that will see the Company develop a full complement of air taxi operating manuals, undergo inspections of its UAE-based facilities, and complete GCAA observation of pilot and aircraft mechanic training as well as flight operations.

In February, the California-based company signed a definitive agreement with RTA to launch air taxi services, positioning Dubai as a world leader in the next generation of fast, clean and quiet air mobility.

With the exclusive right to operate air taxis in Dubai for six years, Joby will launch its services at four prime locations: near Dubai International Airport, the Downtown area, Dubai Marina, and Palm Jumeirah. An air taxi ride from Dubai International Airport to Palm Jumeirah should take around 10 minutes instead of 45 by road.

In April 2024, the company expanded its partnership with the UAE through a multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with 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).

Speaking about the company’s expansion plan in the UAE, Trerotola said: “We have a strategy to eventually expand to a much denser network, both in Dubai and the rest of UAE, depending on how demand evolves over time.”

Making it affordable

On making flying in the skies an affordable transport option for the residents, he said at the press conference: “In the long run, our service needs to be accessible and affordable for all—that has been our mission from day one. It is the only way to truly reduce emissions, cut congestion, and reshape how cities are organised. Initially, like any technology, supply will be limited and prices higher to ensure reliability. We have publicly stated that we'll launch at a price similar to Uber Black. As we scale and add more aircraft, prices will drop, making the service affordable for anyone, especially in a city like this, where we aim to integrate with the existing transportation network.”

Dedicated lanes

Meanwhile, a senior RTA official said the authority will collaborate with other local authorities for having dedicated lanes for facilitating the operation of aerial taxis.

Dedicated lanes already exist for public transport modes like RTA buses and taxis as well as for cycles and e-scooters in different parts of the emirate, explained Ahmad Hassan Mahboob, CEO, Corporate Administrative Support Services Sector at RTA in response to a question about RTA’s plans to have dedicated traffic lanes for public transport and autonomous vehicles.

“They tend to be a success,” he pointed out.

“We are having plans of expanding that all over the city. When it comes air taxis and the project that you heard about earlier, this is something that we will be cooperating with all the local authorities,” added Mahboob.

Public-private partnership in mobility

The ITS World Congress, hosted for the first time in Dubai, will attract 20,000 participants, 800 speakers, and feature 200 sessions on smart mobility advancements. The event will focus on intelligent transportation, sustainable mobility, smart cities, autonomous vehicles, and international cooperation. Organised by ERTICO and hosted by RTA, it marks the first time the congress is held outside Europe, North America, Australia, and East Asia. According to the RTA, Dubai's hosting underscores its growing role in intelligent transportation and its commitment to innovative, sustainable mobility solutions.

ERTICO chairman Angelos Amditis said the event is a pivotal moment for global mobility advancements, driven by a partnership between public and private sectors.

Joost Vantomme, CEO of ERTICO, said the event will see the launch of two new initiatives: a new innovation platform to accelerate innovative aerial services deployment through ITS and the launch of the Middle East Chapter of ERTICO ITS, a public-private partnership organisation with close to 120 members.