From Lab to Launchpad: What We Really Did in Dubai

Jul 28, 2025 — By Didier Papadopoulos, President, Aircraft OEM

Reimagining the future of urban air mobility certainly requires an aircraft with a sleek design. It also involves years of dedicated engineering, validated performance in extreme conditions, regulatory alignment, and the operational muscle to deliver. Our recent piloted flight test campaign in Dubai–which included vertical takeoff, transition to and from wingborne flight, and vertical landing–involved critical commercial market readiness work and marked an important step on our road to passenger service. 

Validating Performance

Building on a steady progression of testing at our Marina, CA, facility and at Edwards Air Force Base, our UAE test flights marked a phase of in-market validation that expanded the environmental envelope of our aircraft. Conducting flights in ambient temperature nearing 110°F provided critical data on thermal management system performance for every part of the aircraft, including battery packs, actuators, and electric motors. Sustained operation in a challenging set of environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, sand, dust, etc.) directly informs our operational models and showcases system reliability across diverse climates. 

These tests also allowed us to evaluate flight dynamics and control in thin, hot air. Lower air density impacts lift and thrust efficiency. Our pilots assessed the aircraft’s responsiveness and handling under these specific conditions and confirmed that the aircraft handled as predicted. This data is invaluable for refining operational procedures and performance envelopes and will be used in FAA certification. 

It may seem obvious, but we also needed to confirm the aircraft could perform in the parameters used at our anticipated vertiport locations, particularly our first location near Dubai International Airport (DXB). Vertical takeoff, transition to wingborne flight and landing are complex maneuvers that need to be achieved reliably and in real-world conditions, which our aircraft demonstrated.

Building Operational Rigor

Commercial market readiness extends beyond the aircraft. It encompasses the entire ecosystem required for routine passenger service. 

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  Maintenance and Logistics: Our Dubai campaign involved a team of Joby personnel, including our FAA-certified test pilots and mechanics, highly trained flight test engineers and technicians, and Dubai-based operators. Their ability to establish and execute efficient ground operations, charging protocols, and aircraft turnarounds in a new, demanding environment provided critical real-world data points for our passenger service model. These operations also provided essential real-time insight into our aircraft maintenance, engineering, and continued airworthiness procedures that are critical parts of the FAA’s type certification requirement.
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  Regulatory Coordination: The campaign involved close coordination with a variety of regulators: Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA),Dubai Air Navigation Services (DANS), Dubai Police and Civil Defence, and many other agencies. The UAE’s proactive and visionary approach has significantly accelerated the path to commercial operations. This direct, in-market regulatory engagement provided real-time feedback for operational approvals, from access to airspace for flight tests to aligning on daily operations standards.
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  Infrastructure: The construction of the first dedicated vertiport at DXB by our partner Skyports underscores the parallel need for ground infrastructure–and not just passenger infrastructure. The MRO (maintenance, repair, and overhaul) base we established for this campaign will be our first in the region, providing critical operational support for our fleet when we launch commercial service. 

From Local to Global

The insights gained from our first set of testing in Dubai complement our significant progress in FAA Type Certification in the U.S. Most recently, we participated in an FAA human-in-the-loop simulation, which modeled eVTOL integration into LAX’s complex Class B airspace. This work directly informs the development of U.S. operational guidance and air traffic control procedures. 

In addition, recent guidance from the FAA clarifies eVTOL airspace integration. Air traffic controllers enforce strict spacing between aircraft, greatly reducing the allowable tempo of airplane operations compared with helicopters. By instructing air traffic controllers to manage powered-lift aircraft like helicopters, this new guidance enables seamless, high-tempo operations in busy airspace. 

Our flight test campaign in Dubai is the best glimpse yet into the future of urban air mobility. It not only expanded our understanding of our aircraft’s capabilities in real-world conditions, but it also highlighted the importance of the components, systems, and operational procedures needed for market launch. Together, these are the ingredients for quiet, dependable everyday transportation.