Santa Cruz aviation company anticipates flying cars in 3 years with Marina-based factory
Toyota has invested nearly $400 million in Joby Aviation
Updated: 5:29 PM PST Jan 17, 2020
Toyota is making a big bet on flying cars. The company invested nearly $400 million in Joby Aviation, a Santa Cruz based company that’s working to create air taxi’s that will join the ride sharing industry.“Instead of driving our view, we will be flying specifically. The notion is that with an electric proportion aircraft, it can take off and land like helicopters,” said JoeBen Bevirt, the founder of Joby Aviation.The company says their air taxi is 100 times quieter than other conventional aircrafts taking off or landing. And with Toyota’s investment of $394 million, the company can now begin construction on its new facility at the Marina Airport.”They’re currently using existing buildings now at the marina airport,” explained Bruce Delgado the Mayor of Marina. “They’ve been there for a few months, so they’re kind of in the startup phase of doing tentative improvements and getting going with the nitty gritty of their business.”This expansion will also bring in hundreds of jobs.“Engineering, design, marketing, and manufacturing. Lots of job types,” said Delgado. “They already have about 175, so they’re going to need a lot more people as time goes on. It’s going to be good for people coming out of our local community colleges and universities to have a place to put their skills to use.”The aviation company provided Action News this statement:“Joby Aviation, the company that pioneered the electric air taxi, has raised $590 million dollars and is partnering with Toyota Motor Company, to bring that mission to life. Joby is excited to become a member of the Marina community by establishing production and operations of our environmentally-friendly electric aircraft in Marina. Our company will create hundreds of jobs in the coming years as we grow our facilities at the Marina Municipal Airport. Joby is actively growing our development, production, and operations teams. We look forward to our continued collaboration with the local community.”The company anticipates the air taxi’s to be in full swing as soon as 2023.
Toyota is making a big bet on flying cars. The company invested nearly $400 million in Joby Aviation, a Santa Cruz based company that’s working to create air taxi’s that will join the ride sharing industry.
“Instead of driving our view, we will be flying specifically. The notion is that with an electric proportion aircraft, it can take off and land like helicopters,” said JoeBen Bevirt, the founder of Joby Aviation.
The company says their air taxi is 100 times quieter than other conventional aircrafts taking off or landing. And with Toyota’s investment of $394 million, the company can now begin construction on its new facility at the Marina Airport.
“They’re currently using existing buildings now at the marina airport,” explained Bruce Delgado the Mayor of Marina. “They’ve been there for a few months, so they’re kind of in the startup phase of doing tentative improvements and getting going with the nitty gritty of their business.”
This expansion will also bring in hundreds of jobs.
“Engineering, design, marketing, and manufacturing. Lots of job types,” said Delgado. “They already have about 175, so they’re going to need a lot more people as time goes on. It’s going to be good for people coming out of our local community colleges and universities to have a place to put their skills to use.”
The aviation company provided Action News this statement:
“Joby Aviation, the company that pioneered the electric air taxi, has raised $590 million dollars and is partnering with Toyota Motor Company, to bring that mission to life. Joby is excited to become a member of the Marina community by establishing production and operations of our environmentally-friendly electric aircraft in Marina. Our company will create hundreds of jobs in the coming years as we grow our facilities at the Marina Municipal Airport. Joby is actively growing our development, production, and operations teams. We look forward to our continued collaboration with the local community.”
The company anticipates the air taxi’s to be in full swing as soon as 2023.
