Delta invests in flying taxis to offer rides to the airport

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a flying taxi!

Delta Air Lines has invested $60 million in Joby Aviation with plans to offer flying taxi services to airports in New York City and Los Angeles.

Joby Aviation has been backed by Uber and the Pentagon and just went public last year.

“I’m optimistic that there are better ways, and certainly more sustainable ways, to get to the airport than sitting in one to two hour traffic jams on the way to JFK or LaGuardia or LAX,” Delta Chief Executive Ed Bastian said.

Delta announced that their initial investment could grow to $200 million if the project proves to continue on the projected deadline.

United Airlines Holdings and American Airlines Groups have also invested in similar projects with both airlines buying their own fleet of flying taxis.

Delta instead plans to outsource Joby’s services and offer the transportation option as an add-on to ticket purchases that can be ordered through the Delta website or app. The service will be a part of Delta’s premium offerings, but plans to keep the pricing unrestrictive.

The companies have not yet announced a launch date for this new service, but Joby has previously announced plans to offer commercial services by 2024.

These flying taxis are not currently permitted to carry paying passengers in the US but similar programs such as BLADE airport rides which currently offers $195 helicopter rides to and from New York City commercial and private airports.

Air-taxi manufacturers have reportedly raised more than $7 billion in the last two years, according to the Wall Street Journal, as travel companies have continued to explore new technologies.

In 2018, Uber announced their hopes to offer flying taxis by 2020. After missing their goal, the company sold their aviation division, Uber Elevate, to Joby who continues to dominate the space.

The option to call a flying taxi to JFK or LaGuardia doesn’t seem like its going to be offered any time too soon but could become a more needed solution as taxis become increasingly scarce and Uber prices continue to skyrocket.