• 26 Dec 2023 05:35 AM
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Joby and Volocopter Fly in New York City

By Dan Gettinger, Managing Editor
Vertiflite, Jan/Feb 2024

On Monday, Nov. 13, Joby and Volocopter conducted demonstration flights of their electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft in New York City. The flights occurred at the Downtown Manhattan Heliport (JRB) and involved a Volocopter 2X and Joby’s preproduction prototype, both of which were crewed. Beta Technologies, the Vermont-based eVTOL developer, also displayed its Charge Cube, an interoperable fast-charging system for electric aircraft.

Both Joby and Archer Aviation — in collaboration with Delta Air Lines and United Airlines, respectively — intend to one day offer commercial eVTOL aircraft services to and from downtown Manhattan, with the latter hoping to use JRB as its destination. Located adjacent to Wall Street, JRB is one of two heliports in New York owned by the city (the other being the East 34th Street Heliport). The site opened in 1960 and today hosts tourism flights, as well as corporate and charter flights (see “The Heliports of New York City,” Vertiflite, Nov/Dec 2021).

This was the world’s first public demonstration of two different companies’ eVTOL aircraft flying at the same place. It was also the first time most of the spectators had seen — and more importantly, heard — eVTOL flights. Joby conducted a test flight on the day before, calling it “the first ever electric air taxi flight in the city and the first time Joby has flown in an urban setting.” Volocopter stated that the company had now “successfully and safely conducted flights in the heart of two of the busiest metropolitan hubs of the world, NYC and Singapore.”

Joby shipped its aircraft to the HHI Heliport in Kearny, New Jersey, for reassembly (see “Serving the Big Apple: The Kearny Heliport,” Vertiflite, July/Aug 2021), conducted test flights and then moved the aircraft by barge across the Hudson River to JRB. Joby noted that it had “flown more than 30,000 miles with its full-scale prototype eVTOL aircraft” since 2017, while Volocopter stated that it had made “over 2,000 successful public and private test flights” of its various multicopter models since 2011.

At the event, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced plans to electrify the Downtown Manhattan Heliport and transform the site into a destination for maritime freight and micro-distribution. The city issued a request for proposals for an operator willing to support aerial operations at JRB and provide the infrastructure required to permit eVTOL aircraft operations, as well as last-mile delivery and maritime freight delivery. As of press time, the submission deadline is Jan. 12, 2024.

“Our vision for the Downtown Manhattan Heliport will create the world’s first heliport with infrastructure for electric-powered aircraft and put this public asset to work for New Yorkers as a hub for sustainable transportation and local deliveries,” the mayor said in a statement.

The project to refashion the heliport is in line with New York’s sustainability and economic revitalization objectives, the mayor’s office said in a press release. One such goal, identified in the mayor’s “PlaNYC: Getting Sustainability Done” strategy, is to shift some freight from diesel-powered trucks to New York’s waterways by activating harbor landings at points around the city. In doing so, the city hopes to reduce emissions from roadways and support the rapid movement of goods around the city.

“Reactivating our waterways for freight mobility and electrifying our transportation systems are key initiatives laid out in PlaNYC that will help us cut transportation emissions in half by 2030,” said New York City Chief Climate Officer Rohit T. Aggarwala.