Joby Aviation's S4 electric air taxi has logged over 1,000 test flight hours, but an unprecedented FAA certification process and infrastructure gaps put commercial service no earlier than 2026–2027.
VectorWisk Aero is seeking FAA approval to fly paying passengers without any pilot onboard - a certification the agency has never granted in the history of commercial aviation.
VectorJoby Aviation has real aircraft, real flight data, and an agreed certification basis with the FAA - but a type certificate for a powered-lift aircraft has never been issued.
VectorBeta Technologies is building electric aircraft and a nationwide charging network simultaneously - a strategy that may determine who wins commercial electric aviation.
VectorArcher Aviation's Midnight eVTOL is navigating the most complex FAA certification process ever attempted for a small electric commercial aircraft - and the outcome will shape the entire industry.
VectorEve Air Mobility is building both an electric air taxi and the software platform to manage urban airspace - a dual strategy that sets it apart from every other eVTOL competitor.
VectorWisk Aero is pursuing FAA certification for a fully pilotless four-passenger air taxi - a regulatory first that could redefine civil aviation for the next 50 years.
VectorJoby Aviation and BETA Technologies are flying eVTOL aircraft in federally supervised North Texas airspace integration tests - a milestone every pilot should track.
TowerSupernal's SA-2 eVTOL aircraft backed by Hyundai's $100B manufacturing empire may be the most credible air taxi program in a field that keeps running out of money.
VectorJoby Aviation's S4 tilt-rotor eVTOL is the furthest along in FAA type certification, navigating a process the agency has never run before.
VectorJoby Aviation's S4 is the most advanced attempt to certify a powered-lift electric air taxi, navigating an unprecedented FAA process targeting commercial operations by 2026–2027.
VectorNASA's X-57 Maxwell validated the aerodynamics of a radically smaller wing powered by 12 leading-edge electric motors, shaping how engineers now design the next generation of electric aircraft.
VectorBeta Technologies is building a 250-mile-range electric aircraft and the charging network to support it - a systems-level bet most rivals aren't making.
VectorJoby Aviation's S4 eVTOL is in FAA Stage 5 type certification - the first powered-lift aircraft to require entirely new civil airworthiness standards.
VectorWisk Aero is pursuing FAA certification for a fully pilotless passenger eVTOL - a regulatory gamble that could define how autonomous aviation gets certified for decades.
VectorBeta Technologies is solving electric aviation's chicken-and-egg infrastructure problem by building both the aircraft and the charging network simultaneously.
VectorJoby Aviation leads the U.S. eVTOL race toward FAA type certification, but as of mid-2026 no powered-lift aircraft has crossed that finish line - here's what the milestones actually mean.
VectorThe EHang EH216-S became the world's first type-certified autonomous passenger eVTOL in October 2023 - and nearly three years of commercial data sets it apart from every American program.
VectorJoby Aviation's S4 eVTOL is closer to FAA certification than most realize - and still further away than the company's early press releases suggested.
VectorWisk Aero's pilotless Generation Six air taxi is the first autonomous passenger aircraft to receive FAA special class airworthiness criteria, targeting commercial service by 2030.
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