The idea of avoiding Dallas-Fort Worth traffic by flying over it moved a little closer to reality last week as electric air taxis began testing routes across North Texas.
According to a Sept. 12 report by the Dallas Express, Joby Aviation launched a weeklong series of flights using its piloted, all-electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft. The campaign began at Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport as part of a three-year state and federal program designed to evaluate how next-generation aircraft could be integrated safely into the nation’s airspace.
The flights are being conducted under Project Nexus, a Texas Department of Transportation initiative selected for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Integration Pilot Program, commonly called eIPP.
Texas became the sixth location to begin operations under the federal program. Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration, TxDOT and the aviation industry gathered at Alliance Airport to watch demonstrations involving Joby’s S4 aircraft and BETA Technologies’ ALIA electric aircraft.
The initial flights do not carry passengers. Instead, they are intended to test routes, airport procedures, aircraft performance and interaction with conventional air traffic. The information collected will help the FAA develop regulations governing larger-scale commercial operations.
Joby planned flights around the Dallas-Fort Worth area through Monday, Sept. 14, although the company said weather and other conditions could affect the schedule. Missions included a scheduled round trip between Alliance Airport and Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, where the aircraft was expected to enter controlled airspace and land at DFW Corporate Aviation.
Other planned routes included a round trip to Arlington, Texas, and a flight connecting Alliance Airport with Toyota Motor North America’s headquarters in Plano. Joby recently leased a 45,000-square-foot facility at Alliance Airport to establish a long-term operating presence in North Texas.
Project Nexus is expected to unfold in three phases over three years. The broader opening phase will use electric aircraft along with helicopters and fixed-wing airplanes to test proposed routes and collect operational data.
Later phases are expected to explore medical and cargo missions, including transporting critical supplies or transplant organs between rural communities and major medical facilities in Austin and San Antonio.
The final phase envisions passenger-carrying air-taxi flights across the Texas Triangle, connecting Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio and eventually Houston. Any passenger service would remain subject to FAA approval and oversight.
Texas’ industry partners include Joby Aviation, Archer Aviation, BETA Technologies and Wisk. Federal officials selected eight proposals covering 26 states from more than 30 submissions for the nationwide program.
Joby said its aircraft has reached the fifth and final stage of the FAA’s type-certification process. That does not mean the aircraft has received final approval for commercial passenger service, but it represents an important step toward that goal.
Research into operating electric air taxis in North Texas began well before these flights. In 2023, NASA and Joby conducted a simulation examining high-volume air-taxi operations around DFW Airport and Dallas Love Field.
No cost estimate for Project Nexus was disclosed in the announcements reviewed by the Dallas Express. Federal program rules state that participating organizations are responsible for their own expenses.
For now, these aircraft remain experimental transportation rather than an airborne alternative to Uber. Still, testing them around some of the country’s busiest airports will help determine whether electric air taxis can eventually move from an interesting demonstration to a practical way of traveling across Texas.
Photo: TxDOT.