Virgin Atlantic has a new partner for its eVTOL dreams. The carrier announced an agreement with Joby over the weekend, displacing its 2021 deal with Vertical Aerospace.
Virgin’s shift follows the lead of Delta Air Lines, which announced a similar agreement with Joby in October 2022. Virgin is now part of the 5-year exclusive deal Delta and Joby inked for connecting service in the US and UK. Delta owns a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic.
Virgin Atlantic’s commitment to delighting its customers reflects our experience with Delta and we couldn’t imagine a better partner to work with in the UK.
– JoeBen Bevirt, Founder and CEO of Joby
The companies produced route maps showing theoretical operations. And they are not just about connecting to onward airline flights. Trips in the London area could stretch as far as Norwich, Birmingham, and Brighton.
At Manchester the map extends to Hull, Nottingham and Liverpool.
Just how accurate these predicted networks prove to be remains to be seen. They will require significant investment in vertiport infrastructure to handle flights. And the relatively small size of the aircraft – just four seats – means capacity at any given destination will be limited. A single landing spot at a vertiport can handle fewer than 400 passengers each day assuming a 15 minute turn time on the ground, 100% occupancy, and 24×7 operations.
Echoes of the past
Reading the two announcements side-by-side also offers a bit of deja vu for the industry. Both Joby and Vertical promise an aircraft holding four passengers plus a pilot. Both advertise a range of 100 miles and a top speed of 200 mph. Both hype the much quicker travel times from Heathrow to key commuter points in the London area. One key difference: Vertical wants to sell its aircraft to customers like Virgin Atlantic while Joby wants to own and operate the hardware.
But where it gets particularly interesting is in the quotes attributed to Virgin CEO Shai Weiss for the pair of announcements.
As a leader in sustainability and with innovation firmly in our DNA, we are delighted to be partnering with Joby to bring short-haul, zero-emission flight to airports and cities throughout the UK. Our strategic partnership combines Joby’s expertise in design, engineering and technology with the power of Virgin Atlantic’s brand and award-winning customer experience. We look forward to working together to bring Joby’s service to the UK and to deliver greater connectivity for our customers.
With innovation and sustainability leadership firmly in our DNA, we are excited to be partnering with Vertical Aerospace to pioneer sustainable and zero emissions air travel in the UK. We pride ourselves on building enduring strategic partnerships and are thrilled to be working alongside Vertical in its mission to bring eVTOL travel to the UK. Our partnership includes an option for Virgin Atlantic to acquire up to 150 eVTOL VA-X4 aircraft and exploration of a Joint Venture to bring short haul, electric vehicle connectivity to cities and our UK airport hubs, starting with London Heathrow as well as Manchester and London Gatwick. Combining the design, engineering and manufacturing expertise of Vertical with the award-winning customer experience and operational excellence of Virgin Atlantic.
(Emphasis added to highlight the similarities)
I get it. There are only so many ways to be excited about innovation and sustainability in the eVTOL market. Plus a good PR team always makes sure to drop a line about award-winning customer experience into a CEO statement.
But seeing nearly identical claims four years later is amusing.
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