Allison, who grew up in Wisconsin, is a veteran of the “Elevate” team at Uber, where he worked on that company’s vision of on-demand air mobility. He also spent time at Zee.Aero, which was Google cofounder Larry Page’s earliest attempt at a flying car company.
Joby has achieved two big Miami Valley milestones in recent months.
In November, the company began production of propeller blades at a Concorde Drive facility near Dayton International Airport.
And earlier this month, Joby said it had agreed to buy a 728,000-square-foot building at 1669 Capstone Way in Vandalia, a concrete step toward plans to double production to four aircraft a month in 2027, while also providing space for “significant future growth,” the company said.
Joby’s investment in the Dayton region is proving significant. Joby Aero, a wholly owned subsidiary of Joby Aviation, agreed to buy the Vandalia building from Capstone STS, LLC, a Texas limited liability company, for $61.5 million, according to an 8-K regulatory document Joby filed this month with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Joby designs and makes electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles, aircraft that can take off and land like helicopters — only with far less noise — but can also fly like conventional planes.
The company seeks to build a civilian market for these craft, quickly flying passengers to big-city airports, but has also explored potential uses with the Air Force.
Allison said his daily commute in the San Francisco area was once 90 minutes one-way. Millions of hours are wasted in gridlock, he said.
“The dream that we have, the focus that we have ... is to take advantage of the third dimension,” Allison said, adding: “We need to think differently about transportation.”
About the Author
