The installation of electrical infrastructure to support Joby’s Global Electric Aviation Charging System (GEACS) comes as part of Clay Lacy’s planned $100m redevelopment of its fixed-based operator (FBO) terminal at John Wayne Airport (SNA), targeting completion in mid-2025. It will be the first such charger in Southern California.
The GEACS charging interface, which is already in use at Joby’s flight test centre in Marina, California and at Edwards Air Force Base, supports the safe and efficient operation of all electric aircraft under development today, including Joby’s air taxi.
The Joby aircraft will be deployed on routes of up to 100 miles, and can carry a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200mph, offering travellers high-speed mobility with no in-flight emissions and a noise footprint substantially lower than today’s helicopters. The installation of a charger at John Wayne Airport will establish the site as a node in Joby’s Southern California air taxi network, which is expected to be one of the first networks to launch in the US.
In 2022, Joby announced it was working with Delta Air Lines to deliver seamless airport trips for its customers across several locations, including Los Angeles.
“Today’s announcement marks a key moment on the path to delivering our air taxi service in the Greater Los Angeles area,” said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby. “We’re taking concrete steps to ensure the right infrastructure is in place to support our future service and we’re grateful to be working with an industry pioneer like Clay Lacy Aviation to lead the way on bringing sustainable aviation to Southern California.”
“The charging technology we have developed is optimised to support our whole industry, from air taxis delivering short range city flights to more conventional electric aircraft flying longer distances. Joby made the specifications for the universal charging interface freely available to the wider industry in November 2023, to help accelerate the transition to clean flight. We’re therefore very pleased to see it being adopted in this key market,” he added.
