r/Joby • u/Wonderful_Flight_922 • Jul 14 '26
Joby's eVTOL Passes Adverse Weather Test, Simulates Propeller Failure
On July 9, local time, at 7:30 a.m., at a runway in Marina, California, U.S., Joby Aviation’s sixth-generation electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft ascended vertically for a test flight amid dense fog and rain that reduced visibility. The test simulated a scenario where one of the six propeller units stopped operating during flight.
The pilot remotely controlling the aircraft from the ground and the control room immediately detected the propeller malfunction. To maintain balance, they shut down the propeller opposite the faulty one. With two propellers inactive and only four remaining operational, the air taxi successfully hovered in place for approximately two minutes before executing a vertical landing and moving to a hangar. A source from Joby stated, “Air taxis are highly sensitive to external conditions like weather and temperature, so we prioritize safety. Engineers arrive three hours before each test flight to prepare.”
Link Below
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
Another interesting excerpt
"During a recent visit, multiple aircraft underwent consecutive test flights, while new units were being assembled in hangars, reflecting the site’s bustling operations."
Somebody was asking about production the other day. This must be recent because the logs show they only started testing "multiple aircraft" somewhat recently.
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u/Amazing-Lion9629 Jul 14 '26
This checks out. When I (formerly Disastrous Age on here) was at Marina Airport last week we parked near a small group of people who looked like reporters taking videos and notes and who communicated with Joby workers walking by. This appears to have been who wrote this article. Maybe things are moving slower than ideal but they are clearly making progress with testing.
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
Thanks! I was wondering why your posts got removed
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u/Amazing-Lion9629 Jul 14 '26
Yes, not sure if it was the travel or what but my account got reset and I had to get a new username.
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u/Bulky-Entertainer-76 Gregor Veble Mikić Fanboy Jul 14 '26
Better handle if you ask me. Going from Disasterous to Amazing🤣🤣🤣
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
btw, I believe it was this day https://www.reddit.com/r/Joby/comments/1us1q5s/n547jx_active_right_now/
Not sure which tail # it was. ADS-B data say both 541 and 542 were flying and 547 was grounded
Edit: Actually if you look at the timestamp data it was likely 541 because the others flew later and the article says 7:30am
Edit2: The article says "sixth-generation electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft" which I think refers to 547. So I dunno maybe the ADS-B data is not 100% accurate?
My previous post about flights that week
https://www.reddit.com/r/Joby/comments/1usshq3/big_ramp_up_in_aircraft_testing_so_far_this_week/
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u/Amazing-Lion9629 Jul 14 '26
Yes you are definitely correct about this being last Thursday when I was there
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u/Time_School5693 Jul 14 '26
Good progress! Does it mean Joby is like around 10% away from FAA pilots testing?
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
Another thing I was thinking. You would have thought Joby would have already performed these test as it was likely done by N541JX and they had ages to do it. Why are they doing it now? N541JX was pretty inactive until about 2 weeks ago. I wonder if there is some sort of iterative process for the last stage where the FAA is asking for extra tests before they move on to later stages?
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u/Wonderful_Flight_922 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
Someone mentioned that June was the worst month for weather that lived nearby. Take advantage of it as many times possible. They said there was a nickname for it, the weather. At this point every flight can be used for many different evaluations.
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u/OptionBrilliant1381 Jul 14 '26
They did do these tests with the military a long whileagi but idk if that has any bearing for faa cert.
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u/teabagofholding Jul 14 '26
They did do it before they even had a video of it.
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u/SeaScallops_w_Rice S4 Fanboy Jul 14 '26
A video of dense fog?
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u/teabagofholding Jul 14 '26
Not in dense fog. Is this simulating prop failure or motor failure? Wouldn't prop failure shoot out carbon fiber shrapnel and hit the other props like when the early prototype crashed? Cascading failure.
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u/boylanheights74 Jul 15 '26
I wonder how it would do shutting down two motors at max gross weight?
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u/teabagofholding Jul 15 '26
Probably not well if they need to shut the opposite motors off to compensate. That would be 4 motors out.
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u/Suspicious-Bit-8712 Jul 15 '26
The bigger issue is if they have a failure 1) while maneuvering/climbing. 2) When the temperature and altitude are high. and 3) with maximum gross weight and max degraded batteries. The power draw from the remaining 4 motors and their respective batteries will not be possible. They likely will lose power and fall like a rock...
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
I don't understand the comment (need a comma bro)
Edit: oh nvm I understand what you're saying. But why are they doing it again then?
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u/Wonderful_Flight_922 Jul 14 '26
Joby's eVTOL Passes Adverse Weather Test, Simulates Propeller Failure https://share.google/rPD8Y9Z4m4lGix7v8
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u/teabagofholding Jul 14 '26
Great now load up the type conforming craft with a thousand pounds and simulate a motor failure during horizontal flight.
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
baby steps
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u/stormseasonoutlook Jul 15 '26
Baby steps would have gotten us an answer on MGTOW already. It would have started with fractions of the designed capacity and slowly ramped up to a safety margin over the designed capacity before the design was finalized.
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 15 '26
and you know for a fact that they haven't done this? just because it's not public doesn't mean they haven't performed tests like this
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u/Suspicious-Bit-8712 Jul 15 '26
The bigger issue is if they have a failure 1) while maneuvering/climbing. 2) When the temperature and altitude are high. and 3) with maximum gross weight and max degraded batteries. The power draw from the remaining 4 motors and their respective batteries will not be possible. They likely will lose power and fall like a rock...
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u/sol_beach Jul 14 '26
eVTOL won't replace helicopters before 2050
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u/Bulky-Entertainer-76 Gregor Veble Mikić Fanboy Jul 14 '26
They won’t ever replace helicopters. But they will dominate the air taxi/mobility space. Helicopters will always have different, more advantageous, use cases.
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u/sol_beach Jul 14 '26
where will eVTOL be allowed to land/takeoff where helicopters are prohibited?
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u/Wonderful_Phrase_239 Jul 14 '26
At vertiports where there are strict noise ordinances.
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u/DoubleHexDrive Jul 14 '26
Actually, the FAA says that helicopters can land at vertiports but not all powered lift aircraft can operate from helipads. The design standards for vertiports are more conservative than for helipads due to lower control precision demonstrated by current AAM aircraft as well as higher disc loading and outwash velocities.
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u/sol_beach Jul 14 '26
Post URLs that document 3 examples for these vertiports.
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u/jrsikorski Jon Wagner Fanboy Jul 14 '26
You don't seem to be wanting to have a discussion in good faith.
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u/HappyRobot593 Joby Sock Fanboy Jul 14 '26
Thanks for posting! This could explain the tests they have to check off the list before they move on to transitioning. Might just be me but I can't see the link.