In September 2026 Joby flew its electric air taxi on Texas routes and a self-flying Joby-equipped plane crossed the US. Here is what is real so far.
The “flying car” has not landed in your driveway yet, but September 2026 brought two real milestones from Joby Aviation, the California company building an electric air taxi. Its aircraft flew real-world routes in Texas under a US government pilot programme, and a separate Joby-equipped plane flew itself across the United States.
Electric air taxi flights in Texas
On 10 September 2026, Joby started a week-long flight campaign around Dallas–Fort Worth. It is part of the eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP), a White House-backed scheme run with the US Department of Transportation. eVTOL means electric vertical take-off and landing: the aircraft lifts off like a helicopter, then flies forward like a plane.
The planned flights included landing at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, one of the world's busiest, and a route to Toyota Motor North America's head office in Plano. Joby says the aim is to give the US aviation regulator, the FAA, the real-world data it needs to write rules for commercial air taxi service.
“Advanced Air Mobility vehicles are the future of aviation and these demonstrations in Texas are critical to getting us there,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said in Joby's release.
Not certified yet
This is the honest part. Joby says it is in the fifth and final stage of FAA type certification, the approval needed before it can carry paying passengers. That approval had not been announced at the time of these flights. The Texas flights were demonstrations, not a passenger service.
A plane that flew itself across America
The second milestone used different hardware. On 18 September 2026, Joby announced that a converted Cessna Caravan fitted with its autonomy system had completed what it calls the first fully autonomous flight across the United States. The plane, called the J208, left Concord, California and finished in North Carolina's Outer Banks, near Kitty Hawk, where the Wright brothers made the first powered flight in 1903.
Key facts from Joby:
- The trip covered 3,199 miles (about 5,150 km).
- The plane taxied, took off, navigated and landed on its own, with zero control inputs from the safety pilot on board.
- Remote pilots supervised it from up to 2,323 miles away, at Joby's base in California and at Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina.
- It rerouted around thunderstorms in real time.
Joby says the system has logged more than 400 flights and 800 automated flight hours. It is pitching it for cargo, medical deliveries, disaster response and military logistics.
“This journey across America offers a glimpse into a new era of aviation,” said Joby founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt.
What it means for buyers in Kenya
Nothing to buy or book yet. Joby's air taxi is still awaiting US certification, and the company has announced no service or partner in Kenya. Any African launch would also need approval from local aviation regulators. The self-flying J208 is a converted cargo plane, not a consumer product. This is a technology to watch, not one to budget for.
Photo: Joby Aviation
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