Saudi Arabia has taken a major step toward launching electric air taxis, signing a new memorandum of understanding between the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) and Joby Aviation to fast-track the deployment of Joby’s aircraft in the Kingdom.
The partnership will use Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification standards as the basis for a streamlined approval pathway, positioning Saudi Arabia as one of the world’s most advanced early adopters of air mobility solutions.
With the agreement, Saudi Arabia joins the US, the UK, Japan, South Korea and the UAE as a global launch market for Joby’s electric air taxi service, strengthening the Kingdom’s long-term ambitions to lead in next-generation aviation technologies.
Air taxis in Saudi Arabia
JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby, said: “We’ve been collaborating with the FAA since 2016 on the certification and the commercial operations of our aircraft, and we’re now putting those standards to work on a global scale.
“We look forward to partnering with GACA on this bold endeavour: to bring quiet, fast and convenient air mobility to Saudi Arabia.”
Captain Sulaiman bin Saleh Al-Muhaimedi, Executive Vice President of Aviation Safety and Environmental Sustainability at GACA, said the agreement marks a crucial milestone in achieving the Kingdom’s advanced air mobility (AAM) objectives.
He said the initiative aims not only to introduce new aviation technologies, but also to build domestic capability by localising key aspects of manufacturing and developing highly qualified national talent.
According to Al-Muhaimedi, the collaboration supports the AAM roadmap within the Aviation Programme of the National Transport and Logistics Strategy.
Regulatory framework to be built around FAA standards
To accelerate the development of Saudi Arabia’s AAM ecosystem, GACA and Joby will cooperate across three core tracks informed by Joby’s FAA certification work:
- Technical expertise covering type design, production and operational requirements to support a comprehensive regulatory structure
- Collaboration on airworthiness standards to support efficient FAA Type Certification validation
- Development and harmonisation of regulations governing initial operations, including pilot licensing, maintenance and airspace integration
Joby continues to advance toward full FAA Type Certification in the US, with the company nearing the final phase involving direct evaluation of aircraft performance and safety by FAA test pilots.
Globally, Joby also contributed to the NAA Network’s five-nation AAM roadmap, which seeks to establish coordinated global certification approaches.
Growing commercial partnerships
Joby’s broader Saudi strategy includes key relationships with Abdul Latif Jameel, which is exploring the delivery of up to 200 Joby aircraft valued at approximately $1bn, and with Aloula Aviation (formerly Mukamalah Aviation), the aviation arm of Saudi Aramco.
The latest announcement builds on the renewed economic partnership between the U.S. administration and the Saudi government following US President Trump’s visit to the Kingdom in May this year.
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