‘Flying Car’ Successfully Tested By Toyota Motor Startup, Moving Automaker Closer to Nearly 80-Year-Old Dream

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:23 JST, November 3, 2024

A Toyota Motor Corp. startup has successfully conducted the first domestic flight of its “flying car,” Toyota has announced.

Toyota aims to begin commercial operation of the car in the Middle East and other regions as early as 2025, with plans for demonstration flights at the Osaka-Kansai Expo.

Conducted by U.S.-based startup Joby Aviation, Inc., the maiden flight in Japan took place in late October at the Toyota Technical Center Higashi-Fuji in Susono, Shizuoka Prefecture. The test vehicle was shown to the press at the research facility on Saturday, the day the success of the flight was announced.

The aircraft is approximately 6 meters long and 12 meters wide, with a total capacity for five people, including crew and passengers. During flight at an altitude of 500 meters, the noise level is reported to be 45 decibels, which is quieter than a typical car (70 decibels) or human conversation (60 decibels).

Procedures are underway to obtain the type certification required for commercial operation from aviation authorities in the United States, Japan, Europe and elsewhere.

Toyota’s interest in aerial mobility dates all the way back to 1943 when its founder, Kiichiro Toyoda, created a prototype helicopter. To date, Toyota has invested approximately $900 million (about ¥130 billion) in Joby and has supported development by dispatching dozens of executives and engineers.

During the event on Saturday, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda held one of the propeller blades used in the aircraft, saying, “With this technology, it will take just 25 minutes to travel from central Tokyo to Higashi-Fuji, transforming daily life.”