Joby Aviation and infrastructure firm Atoms announced a strategic partnerships on August 4, 2026, to acquire and develop a network of vertiports across four initial U.S. states, signaling a shift in the electric air taxi industry’s focus from aircraft certification to ground infrastructure.

In a press release issued by Joby Aviation, the companies detailed plans to build multimodal transportation hubs in Florida, New York, Texas, and California. The facilities will integrate eVTOL aircraft operations with autonomous ground vehicles, ridesharing services, and on-site charging capabilities to support early commercial air taxi flights.

Infrastructure as the next aviation bottleneck

Atoms Real Estate, the infrastructure arm of the industrial AI company led by Travis Kalanick, will manage the complex, power-intensive deployments required for the vertiports. These hubs are designed to facilitate passenger connections, aircraft servicing, and last-mile ground transportation in dense urban environments.

“Smart cities require innovative real estate and infrastructure development,” said Travis Kalanick, Founder and CEO of Atoms. “As new transport modes and smart city services become available, designing and deploying a new asset class to support them is critical. We’re focused on serving city stakeholders with inspired, efficient buildouts that deliver great experiences for residents and communities alike.”

Joby Aviation Founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt noted that thoughtful urban planning often takes a decade or more. He emphasized that making electric flight a daily reality requires a new generation of transportation hubs connecting aircraft, ground transport, and local communities.

Regulatory alignment and the eIPP

The vertiport expansion aligns with Joby’s preparations for early operations under the White House-backed eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). On March 9, 2026, Joby announced its selection as a partner in multiple winning applications for the eIPP, which spans 10 U.S. states.

Established by Presidential Executive Order, the eIPP permits eVTOL manufacturers to introduce their technology to communities and conduct early operations prior to full Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) type certification. The program is designed to accelerate regulatory coordination among the FAA, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), and local municipal authorities.

Joby has already flown its first FAA-conforming aircraft and is currently in the final stage of FAA type certification. The manufacturers has previously demonstrated its operational capabilities through piloted test flights in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City.

AirPro News analysis

We view the Joby and Atoms partnership as a necessary evolution in the advanced air mobility sector. For years, the primary hurdle for eVTOL manufacturers has been navigating the FAA certification process. As companies like Joby approach the final stages of type certification, the lack of physical, power-intensive ground infrastructure has emerged as the most significant barrier to scaled commercial operations.

By partnering with a dedicated real estate and infrastructure firm, Joby is attempting to offload the capital-intensive and politically complex process of urban land acquisition and grid integration. The selection of Florida, New York, Texas, and California as initial target markets directly mirrors the regions with the highest anticipated demand for early air taxi services, though securing local zoning approvals in these dense urban environments will likely remain a formidable challenge.

Sources: Joby Aviation

NOEMI Aerospace is developing a dedicated amphibious firefighting variant of its upcoming aircraft platform, aiming to deliver a 4-tonne water payload capability with significantly shorter scooping distances than legacy water bombers.

In an August 4, 2026 press release, the Norwegian manufacturers announced it is actively seeking government agencies and industrial partners to launch the firefighting program. Company leadership indicated this specialized variant could potentially reach the market before the baseline passenger aircraft.

Performance and payload specifications

The proposed firefighting aircraft is designed to carry approximately 4 tonnes of water or 3 tonnes of fire retardant. According to the company, the aircraft will offer a ferry range of 2,000 nautical miles and a maximum cruise speed of 190 knots, depending on the final propulsion configuration.

A key operational advantage of the NOEMI design is its required open water distance for scooping. Aviation International News reported the aircraft requires 2,800 feet of water to scoop a full load, compared to the 4,500 feet required by the widely used Canadair CL-415. This reduced distance allows operators to utilize smaller lakes and rivers closer to fire zones, increasing the frequency of water drops.

While the baseline passenger variant is designed around a fully electric aviation propulsion system, the firefighting variant will likely utilize a hybrid-electric or conventional fuel system to maximize payload.

“If you start to downsize that battery package and integrate a hybrid system, you really increase the useful load dramatically,” NOEMI Aerospace Founder and Chief Executive Officer Eric Lithun told Aviation International News.

Multi-mission strategy and prototype funding

The firefighting variant is part of a broader multi-mission strategy NOEMI Aerospace unveiled on May 19, 2026. The company, formerly known as Elfly Group, is designing a core amphibious airframe that can be adapted for passenger transport, cargo, skydiving, and military operations.

“Our strategy has always been to develop one highly capable platform that can serve multiple markets,” NOEMI Aerospace Chief Engineer Simon Bendrey stated in the press release. “Firefighting is one of the most attractive adjacent opportunities because it requires many of the same strengths our aircraft is already designed to deliver.”

Development of the core platform is supported by recent government funding. On July 15, 2026, Innovation Norway awarded NOEMI Aerospace a €3 million grant. According to eVTOL Insights, this grant is matched by €4 million in private investments, fully funding the €7 million flight test program for the TAC-1 full-scale experimental prototype.

The company is currently assembling the TAC-1 prototype at Torp Sandefjord Airport (TRF) in Norway. Aviation Week reported that initial propeller testing on a ground rig is expected by the end of the third quarter of 2026, with the TAC-1 targeting a first flight in late 2027. Type certification for the baseline passenger aircraft is targeted for 2030.

AirPro News analysis

The global aerial firefighting fleet is facing a capacity crisis. Climate change is extending fire seasons and increasing fire intensity, while the primary workhorse of the industry, the Canadair CL-415, has been out of production for nearly a decade. While De Havilland Canada is working to launch the updated DHC-515, delivery slots are limited and heavily backlogged by European government orders.

NOEMI Aerospace is positioning its platform to fill this exact gap. The decision to pivot from pure electric to hybrid-electric or conventional propulsion for the firefighting variant is a necessary engineering compromise. Current battery energy density cannot support the high payload and rapid turnaround requirements of aerial firefighting. By swapping heavy battery packs for a hybrid system, NOEMI reclaims the weight capacity needed for a 4-tonne water payload.

We note a typographical error in the manufacturer’s August 4 press release, which lists a 32-tonne retardant capacity in its bulleted specifications. Given the aircraft’s maximum water payload of 4 tonnes and a separate mention of a 3-tonne retardant payload earlier in the same document, the 3-tonne figure is the accurate specification.

Sources: NOEMI Aerospace

Eve Air Mobility has successfully executed the first partial transition flight of its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) engineering prototype, activating the aircraft’s rear pusher propeller in flight for the first time.

In a press release issued on August 3, 2026, the Embraer-backed company confirmed the milestone, which validates the aerodynamic design during one of the most complex phases of eVTOL operation: the shift from vertical lift to forward wing-borne flight.

Flight test metrics and envelope expansion

During the test conducted in Melbourne, Florida, the prototype reached a maximum height of 90 feet above ground level. The flight lasted 3 minutes and 9 seconds, covering a distance of approximately 0.84 nautical miles.

Engineers activated the pusher propeller up to 1,200 RPM, allowing the aircraft to attain a stabilized speed of 27 knots and a maximum ground speed of 30 knots.

“This flight successfully demonstrated pusher activation in flight and validated key performance targets at the start of the transition phase. The data collected will support continued envelope expansion as we advance toward higher speeds and more complex transition flight testing,” said Marcelo Basile, Head of Engineering at Eve Air Mobility.

The engineering team will use the data from this partial transition to expand the airspeed envelope. Upcoming datalink testing will target speeds up to 50 knots.

Development timeline and regulatory progress

The transition flight follows the May 21, 2026, closeout of the prototype’s hover and low-speed flight block. That initial testing phase encompassed 59 flights and 2 hours and 27 minutes of accumulated flight time to prepare the aircraft for forward flight dynamics.

“This first partial transition flight is an important milestone in Eve’s development journey. Successfully activating the pusher propulsion system in flight validates a key aspect of our aircraft design and brings us one step closer to delivering safe, efficient and scalable air mobility solutions,” said Johann Bordais, Chief Executive Officer of Eve Air Mobility.

The flight test progress aligns with recent regulatory and commercial momentum for the production aircraft, designated as the Eve 100. On July 19, 2026, Brazil’s National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) published proposed noise certification criteria for the aircraft. During the same week, Eve secured an order for up to 16 eVTOLs from Shearwater Global Capital and signed a Letter of Intent with Moov for up to 30 aircraft intended for regional mobility in Cabo Verde.

Financial context

Following the announcement, Eve Air Mobility (NYSE: EVEX) shares saw a 2.6 percent premarket trading increase, reaching $2.38. The transition flight milestone arrives one day before the company is scheduled to report its second-quarter 2026 earnings on August 4, 2026.

AirPro News analysis

The transition phase is widely considered the most aerodynamically critical hurdle in eVTOL development. Managing the handoff of lift from vertical rotors to a fixed wing while engaging forward propulsion introduces complex structural and software challenges. By successfully activating the pusher propeller and gathering real-world data at 27 knots, Eve has cleared a major technical bottleneck. We view this methodical progression from the hover block to partial transition as a strong indicator of the program’s engineering discipline, which will be essential as the company navigates the certification process with ANAC and other global regulators.

Sources: Eve Air Mobility / Embraer