Texas has started a three-year effort examining how electric aircraft could eventually carry passengers. Dallas is about 37 miles south of Aubrey. The Texas Department of Transportation initiative, called Project Nexus, began its first phase Sept. 10 at Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport, where Joby Aviation and BETA Technologies demonstrated aircraft.
Joby's aircraft uses electric propulsion and vertical takeoff capability. No passengers were aboard the initial flights. The opening work uses helicopters and fixed-wing airplanes to study possible routes and collect information for future advanced-air-mobility operations.
Joby planned seven days of piloted North Texas flights through TxDOT's participation in the federal eVTOL Integration Pilot Program. Proposed missions included flying directly to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, making a round trip to Arlington and connecting Alliance Airport with Toyota Motor North America's headquarters in Plano. One test involved a Joby aircraft operating inside DFW's controlled airspace before landing at DFW Corporate Aviation.
NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration have studied incorporating electric air taxis into North Texas aviation since 2018. A 2023 simulation by Joby and NASA examined whether the DFW terminal area could handle as many as 50 electric air taxi operations per hour. The report does not give the simulation's results or a schedule for commercial passenger service.
