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California-based electric vertical take-off and landing developer Joby Aviation has announced an agreement with Virgin Atlantic that will see the companies partner on the launch of Joby’s electric air taxi service in the United Kingdom.
The agreement with Virgin Atlantic builds on Joby’s existing partnership with Delta Air Lines, which since 2013 has owned a 49% stake in the U.K.-based airline. Joby and Delta in 2022 announced their own mutually exclusive agreement to partner on an airport shuttle service in select markets in the U.S. and U.K., and Joby said this partnership has now been extended to include Virgin Atlantic in the U.K.
Related: The fascinating fine print behind Delta’s bet on Joby
The extension is a natural one, as Delta is an investor in Joby and has an interest in seeing it expand its reach into international markets. However, it also reflects Europe’s waning influence in the emerging eVTOL industry, as pre-revenue aircraft developers in the U.S. outpace their competitors across the pond in funding. Virgin Atlantic had previously announced a high-profile partnership with U.K.-based eVTOL developer Vertical Aerospace.
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