ANA Holdings intends to launch commercial air taxi services across Japan from 2027, as part of its partnership with US electric air taxi developer Joby Aviation.
Both companies signalled their intent to form a joint venture to provide the air taxi services, with ANA looking to deploy more than 100 Joby S4 electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft as part of the agreement.
According to the group, air taxi services will first start in metropolitan Tokyo, before expanding to neighbouring prefectures, including Kansai and Chubu, where the major cities of Osaka and Nagoya are located at.
While it did not disclose specifics, ANA says it will implement a “pricing model that is easy for customers to use on a daily basis, along with a convenient reservation system”.
It envisages the air taxis will reduce travel time to the airport: a trip from central Tokyo to Narita airport would take around 15min by air taxi, compared to an hours’ ride by train.
In the lead-up to its commercial deployment, ANA also confirms that it will be conducting a series of demonstration flights at the 2025 World Expo, held in Osaka.
In 2022, the two companies – along with Joby investor Toyota Motor Corporation – first disclosed plans to create an aerial ride-sharing service in Japan.
“ANA Holdings and Joby also plan to accelerate the development of the necessary ecosystem for the successful implementation of air taxi services across Japan—including a network of vertiports, pilot training programs, and aircraft maintenance support—by further strengthening collaboration with national and local governments, as well as private sector companies,” it adds.
The news comes on the back of Joby’s announcement that it would be acquiring Blade Air Mobility’s passenger-transportation brokering and marketing business for at least $90 million.
