Stacking the Deck

Joby Aviation, the California-based, Toyota-backed designer and builder of Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) vehicles, announced on 24 March 2023 that former FAA Administrator Michael Huerta had been appointed to the company’s board of directors.

Mr. Huerta also serves on the Board of Directors for Delta Air Lines, which in October 2022 announced a multi-year, multi-market commercial and operational partnership with Joby.

As part of the agreement between the two companies, Delta made an up-front equity investment $60-million in Joby, with a total investment of up to $200-million contingent upon Joby’s achievement of mutually-agreed-upon progress milestones.

Mr. Huerta’s appointment to Joby’s Board of Directors follows the 2021 appointment of Dan Elwell, former Acting FAA Administrator, to the company’s advisory board. The FAA plays a critical role in bringing aircraft—to include electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft—to market, and the appointments of Messrs. Huerta and Elwell correspond serendipitously with Joby’s attempts to see its eVTOL receive FAA type certification by 2025. Joby is the first eVTOL concern to complete the first two stages of the FAA’s five-stage type certification process. What’s more, Joby’s eVTOL is the only contraption of its ilk to receive airworthiness approval from the U.S. Air Force.

Joby Aviation founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt stated: “Michael is joining our team at a pivotal time for Joby and the broader eVTOL industry, and his dual seat on Joby and Delta’s Boards will be invaluable as we prepare for commercial operations. He has been a strong proponent of electric aircraft and future aviation technologies, and we’re grateful for the passion and depth of experience he brings to our team.”

Huerta completed a five-year term as FAA Administrator in 2018, during which the agency enjoyed an unprecedented safety record. Mr. Huerta previously served as Acting FAA Administrator from 2011 to 2013 and Deputy FAA Administrator from 2010 to 2011. In addition to currently serving the aviation and transportation industries in a consulting capacity, Mr. Huerta retains a seat on Verra Mobility Corporation’s board of directors.

Speaking to the subject of Huerta’s appointment to Joby’s board, Delta CEO Ed Bastian set forth: “Joby and Delta are pioneering a groundbreaking new way to travel. Michael’s aviation experience is a tremendous benefit to both companies as we work to deeply integrate our two services to make booking travel easier, the end-to-end journey more seamless, and to deliver customers maximum time savings.”

Mr. Huerta remarked: “The United States is on the verge of a new era of aviation, with electric aircraft like Joby’s transforming how we travel. I’ve been impressed by Joby’s leadership in the sector and look forward to supporting the team as it works toward making fast and clean everyday flight a reality.”

Joby's board of directors comprises considerable aviation industry talent and clout. In addition to former FAA bosses Huerta and Elwell, board-members include: Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and a Partner at Greylock; Aicha Evans, CEO of Zoox; Dr. James Kuffner, CEO and Representative Director of Woven Planet Holdings, and a Member of the Board of Directors and Operating Officer of Toyota; Dipender Saluja, Managing Director of Capricorn Investment Group; Halimah DeLaine Prado, General Counsel of Google; and Laura Wright, former CFO of Southwest Airlines Co. The board is chaired by Paul Sciarra, co-founder of Pinterest.

FMI: www.jobyaviation.com