[AutonomousVehicles] Joby Completes Flight of More Than 150 Miles with Electric Vertical Take-Off Air Taxi

Wed Aug 18 10:05:05 UTC 2021

Hi Fellow Committee Members,
Below is the info from Joby's site on the completion of their 150 mile test
flight. I'm including article text and article link.

Here is the link to the article:
https://www.jobyaviation.com/news/joby-completes-flight-of-more-than-150-miles/

Article Text:

JUL 27, 2021

Joby Completes Flight of More Than 150 Miles with Electric Vertical
Take-Off Air Taxi

Flight completed during developmental flight testing; longest "eVTOL"
flight to date

150+ Miles with Joby's Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing Aircraft

Santa Cruz, CA, Jul 27, 2021 — Joby Aero Inc. (“Joby”), a California-based
company developing an all-electric air taxi for commercial passenger
service, today announced it had achieved an important milestone in the
development of its aircraft, flying a full-size prototype vehicle more than
150 miles on a single charge, including a vertical take-off and landing.

The flight was completed at Joby’s Electric Flight Base in Big Sur, CA
earlier this month as part of the company’s ongoing flight test campaign.
The aircraft, piloted from the ground by Joby’s Chief Test Pilot, Justin
Paines, took off vertically before transitioning to forward flight and
completing 11 laps of a predefined circuit. After more than 1 hour and 17
minutes in the air, the aircraft landed vertically, having covered a total
distance of 154.6 statute miles.

Commenting on the milestone, JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby, said:
“We’ve achieved something that many thought impossible with today’s battery
technology.

“By doing so we’ve taken the first step towards making convenient,
emissions-free air travel between places like San Francisco and Lake Tahoe,
Houston and Austin, or Los Angeles and San Diego an everyday reality.”

Joby’s prototype aircraft uses commercially available lithium ion batteries
that have been adapted for aerospace use. An 811 NMC cathode and a graphite
anode cell were selected, following internal testing, to deliver the
optimal trade-off between the specific energy required to fly the aircraft
150 miles, the specific power to take-off and land vertically and the cycle
life to deliver an affordable service. We have demonstrated in the lab that
this battery is capable of more than 10,000 of our expected nominal flight
cycles.

The team developing Joby’s energy system is led by Jon Wagner, Head of
Powertrain and Electronics, who previously led battery engineering at
Tesla. Commenting on the achievement, he said: “Since the day I joined Joby
four years ago, we’ve worked hard to maximize the energy efficiency of this
aircraft and prove what we have always known to be possible with today’s
battery technology. With the right cell chemistry and a lot of hard work
across the entire engineering team, we’ve been able to create a remarkably
efficient aircraft that can make the most of today’s commercially available
batteries.”

Justin Paines, a former Royal Air Force test pilot who helped develop the
controls for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter before joining Joby as its Chief
Test Pilot, added: “We’ve been building up to this for several months now,
flying progressively longer sorties.

“As we’ve extended the range, we’ve been able to identify modifications to
the aircraft that improve efficiency and, for the final few tests, we were
able to upgrade the landing gear on our prototype aircraft to one with a
drag profile more representative of what we expect to see on our production
aircraft.

“While we still have plenty more testing to do, achieving this milestone is
an important validation of our technology and I’m incredibly proud to have
played a small part in what is, to our knowledge, the longest all-electric
eVTOL flight performed to date.”

Joby’s aircraft is expected to start commercial passenger service in 2024,
transporting a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200 mph.

The company is working towards certifying its aircraft with the Federal
Aviation Administration, having already agreed on a “G-1” certification
basis and been awarded a US Air Force Airworthiness Approval.

About Joby

Joby Aero, Inc. is a California-headquartered transportation company
developing an all-electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft which it
intends to operate as part of a fast, quiet, and convenient air taxi
service beginning in 2024. The aircraft, which has a range of 150 miles on
a single charge, can transport a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up
to 200 mph. It is designed to help reduce urban congestion and accelerate
the shift to sustainable modes of transit. Founded in 2009, Joby employs
more than 800 people, with offices in Santa Cruz, San Carlos, and Marina,
California, as well as Washington D.C. and Munich, Germany. To learn more,
visit www.jobyaviation.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This Press Release contains certain forward-looking statements within the
meaning of the federal securities laws with respect to the proposed
transaction between RTP and Joby Aviation. These forward-looking statements
generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,”
“anticipate,” “estimate,” in “intend,” “strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,”
“plan,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will
likely result,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are
predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are
based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject
to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events
to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this Press
Release, including but not limited to: (i) the risk that the transaction
may not be completed in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely
affect the price of RTP’s securities, (ii) the risk that the transaction
may not be completed by RTP’s business combination deadline and the
potential failure to obtain an extension of the business combination
deadline if sought by RTP, (iii) the failure to satisfy the conditions to
the consummation of the transaction, including the adoption of the
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of February 23, 2021 (the “Merger
Agreement”), by and among RTP, Joby and RTP Merger Sub Inc., a Delaware
corporation and a direct wholly owned subsidiary of RTP, by the
shareholders of RTP, the satisfaction of the minimum trust account amount
following redemptions by RTP’s public shareholders and the receipt of
certain governmental and regulatory approvals, (iv) the lack of a third
party valuation in determining whether or not to pursue the transaction,
(v) the inability to complete the PIPE investment in connection with the
transaction, (vi) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance
that could give rise to the termination of the Merger Agreement, (vii) the
effect of the announcement or pendency of the transaction on Joby
Aviation’s business relationships, operating results and business
generally, (viii) risks that the proposed transaction disrupts current
plans and operations of Joby Aviation and potential difficulties in Joby
Aviation employee retention as a result of the transaction, (ix) the
outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Joby
Aviation or against RTP related to the Merger Agreement or the transaction,
(x) the ability to maintain the listing of RTP’s securities on a national
securities exchange, (xi) the price of RTP’s securities may be volatile due
to a variety of factors, including changes in the competitive and highly
regulated industries in which RTP plans to operate or Joby Aviation
operates, variations in operating performance across competitors, changes
in laws and regulations affecting RTP’s or Joby Aviation’s business and
changes in the combined capital structure, (xii) the ability to implement
business plans, forecasts, and other expectations after the completion of
the transaction, and identify and realize additional opportunities, and
(xiii) the risk of downturns and a changing regulatory landscape in the
highly competitive aviation industry. The foregoing list of factors is not
exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the
other risks and uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of
RTP’s registration on Form S-1 (File No. 333-248497), the registration
statement on Form S-4 discussed above and other documents filed by RTP from
time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other
important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and
results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking
statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are
made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking
statements, and RTP and Joby Aviation assume no obligation and do not
intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a
result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Neither RTP nor
Joby Aviation gives any assurance that either RTP or Joby Aviation or the
combined company will achieve its expectations.

Contacts

For Joby
Investors:
investors at jobyaviation.com
+1-831-201-6006

Media:
press at jobyaviation.com

-- 
Cornelius Butler
President
Butler New Media, LLC
"Creating A More Accessible World"
http://www.butlernewmedia.com
email: corn at butlernewmedia.com
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