Electric air taxi developer Joby has resumed flight tests after an accident involving its first pre-production prototype in February 2022.
While the first electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) prototype was substantially damaged in the crash, the company said it has restarted flight with its second pre-production aircraft at its facility in Marina, California.
“We’re excited to be back in the air with our second pre-production prototype aircraft, building on the tremendous flight test achievements our team has made to date,” said Didier Papadopoulos, Head of Programs and Systems at Joby.
Joby took the decision to pause flight testing after the crash on February 16, 2022, which occurred after a component failure, according to initial analysis.
“Joby continues to work closely with the FAA and National Transportation Safety Bureau (NTSB) to investigate the accident and provides regular briefings on its flight test plans,” it said in a statement on March 24, 2022.
Joby said the second aircraft first flew in January, after gaining approval to fly from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. Air Force. So far, it has made 38 flights, reaching speeds of more than 90 miles per hour, as the company aims to reach type certification.
Joby also gave a brief financial update on March 24, 2022. It said it had $1.3 billion in cash and short-term investments to support operations at the end of 2021 and made a net profit of $5 million in the fourth quarter of 2021.