export_ofoct.com

[00:00.67] The same area where the Wright brothers developed the first airplane will soon see electric planes that take off and land vertically.

[00:12.09] The planes, called “flying taxis” will be produced under an agreement between the state of Ohio and Joby Aviation at Dayton International Airport.

[00:26.17] Ohio Governor Mike DeWine told The Associated Press, “When you’re talking about air taxis, that’s the future.”

[00:35.47] Around the world, electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, or flying taxis, are becoming more common.

[00:47.42] Still, questions remain about noise levels and charging demands.

[00:54.06] Developers say the planes are nearing the day when they will provide a way to move individual people or small groups from the top of buildings and parking spaces to their destinations.

[01:08.94] The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, lived and worked in Dayton, Ohio.

[01:15.84] In 1910, they opened the first U.S. airplane factory there.

[01:22.21] To connect with this history, Joby’s official announcement Monday took place at Orville Wright’s home, Hawthorn Hill, and ended with a special flight of a copy of the Wright Model B Flyer.

[01:38.69] Engineers designed Joby’s production aircraft to transport a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 321.87 kilometers per hour. The aircraft can cover a distance of up to 160.93 kilometers.

[02:01.79] It is a quiet machine that can barely be heard in most cities, the company said.

[02:08.70] The plan is to place them in aerial ridesharing networks beginning in 2025.

[02:16.66] Joby Aviation is a 14-year-old company that went public in 2021 and became the first eVTOL firm to receive a special kind of permission, or certification, from the U.S. Air Force.

[02:34.99] Its production efforts are supported by partnerships with Toyota, Delta Air Lines, Intel and Uber.

[02:45.09] The $500 million project is supported by up to $325 million in payments from the state of Ohio.

[02:56.78] With the money, Joby plans to build an Ohio facility capable of delivering up to 500 aircraft a year and creating 2,000 jobs.

[03:10.06] The U.S. Department of Energy has invited Joby to apply for a loan to support development of the facility as a clean energy project.

[03:21.74] Joby CEO JoeBen Bevirt told the AP that the company chose Ohio after a large and competitive search.

[03:32.37] Ohio's financial deal was not the largest, but the chance to bring the operation to the birthplace of aviation — with a workforce experienced in the field — led to the deal, he said.

[03:47.78] The announcement comes as a group of Ohio’s congressional representatives has recently increased efforts to draw the U.S.

[03:58.13] Air Force’s new U.S. Space Command headquarters or Space Force units to Ohio.

[04:04.24] There, too, state leaders point to the history of the Wrights, as well as Ohio-born astronauts John Glenn and Neil Armstrong.