Joby Aviation (JOBY.US) partners with Virgin Atlantic to launch air taxi services in the UK

According to zhichuang Finance APP, electric air taxi developer Joby Aviation (JOBY.US) on Wednesday finalized its partnership with Virgin Atlantic, turning the agreement announced in 2025 into a binding multi-year commercial contract. As of press time, Joby Aviation rose 2.34% in pre-market trading, having earlier climbed as much as 7%.

The agreement establishes Virgin Atlantic as Joby's exclusive airline partner for air taxi services in the UK. Passengers can book Joby's air taxi flights as well as long-haul flights through Virgin Atlantic’s website and mobile application.

Joby plans to launch its service from Virgin Atlantic’s hubs in London and Manchester, with the first routes expected to include Manchester Airport to Leeds (approximately 15 minutes) and Heathrow to central London (as fast as 8 minutes), compared to over an hour by car for these journeys today.

Under the partnership, Joby will be responsible for aircraft operations, route planning, and obtaining regulatory approval from the UK Civil Aviation Authority, while Virgin Atlantic will support infrastructure integration and customer acquisition at the two hubs.

Over time, Joby expects to expand this network to cities and communities across the UK.

This partnership builds on Joby’s existing relationship with Delta Air Lines (DAL.US), which holds a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic. In 2022, Joby and Delta announced an intercity collaboration to jointly develop transportation services from communities to airports.