Joby Just Beat Archer in Washington’s Latest Air Taxi Test
The Trump administration’s new eVTOL Integration Pilot Program gave both Archer and Joby a boost, but let’s not pretend this was a tie. It was not. The FAA and Department of Transportation selected eight pilot proposals nationwide, spanning 26 states, to help accelerate real-world testing of next-generation aircraft before broader commercial rollout. The program matters because operations under it are expected to begin by summer 2026, giving selected companies a valuable chance to gather data, prove capability, and shape future regulation.
Archer did well. It was named in Florida, Texas, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey effort. That is real momentum, and Archer has made meaningful certification progress, including becoming the first eVTOL company to achieve 100% FAA acceptance of its Means of Compliance. It also ended 2025 with about $2.0 billion in liquidity and says it is targeting first passenger-carrying flights in 2026. None of that is trivial. In startup aviation, surviving long enough to brag is half the sport.
The Winner: Joby
But Joby came out ahead, and not by accident. As The Motley Fool noted, Joby was selected for those same three programs plus two more, in Utah and North Carolina. That gives Joby broader geographic reach, more operational pathways, and more chances to turn policy momentum into practical advantage. In a sector where timelines slip and headlines multiply faster than aircraft, more real-world shots on goal matter.
More importantly, Joby looks further along where it counts most: actual certification-linked execution. On March 11, Joby announced that its first FAA-conforming aircraft had begun flight testing for Type Inspection Authorization, which the company described as a major step in the final stage of FAA type certification. FAA pilots are expected to begin “for credit” TIA flight testing later this year at Joby’s Marina facility. That is not just paperwork progress. That is a certifiable aircraft in the air.
So yes, Archer got rewarded. But Joby looks like the clearer winner because it has more pilot-program placements and stronger evidence that it is converting regulatory progress into aircraft, testing, and a path to service. Archer still has a serious shot. But right now, Joby looks less like a promising contender and more like the company most likely to actually get Santa Cruz’s air taxi future off the ground.
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