oby Aviation, Inc., a California-based company developing all-electric aircraft for commercial passenger service, today announced its acquisition of Avionyx, an established aerospace software engineering firm, to support its aircraft type certification program with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Based in San Jose, Costa Rica, Avionyx has been a respected provider of software development and verification solutions to the aerospace community for more than 30 years. The acquisition allows Joby to scale resources rapidly to support the Company's certification activities through the integration of an experienced team with a proven track record. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Software verification is a critical element of commercial aerospace certification programs, requiring engineers to review, analyze, and test the software deployed across the aircraft according to FAA regulations and standards. Avionyx has extensive experience performing software verification services to both FAA and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) standards.

Joby first awarded Avionyx a contract in 2021 to assist with software testing and verification activities for the Company's electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, which has numerous systems onboard that require extensive review, analysis, and testing pursuant to FAA regulations for flight software.

“Acquiring Avionyx puts us in excellent position to meet the regulatory requirements necessary for us to bring the Joby aircraft to market,” said Tom Ferrell, Development Assurance Lead at Joby. “Having worked alongside Avionyx for the last year, I'm continuously impressed by the wealth of experience they bring to our software verification activities.”

This transaction demonstrates Joby's continuing progress on software verification activities, following the recent completion of the Company's first Compliance Review with FAA representatives at the end of last year. These reviews evaluated Joby's approach to the development and verification of aerospace-grade software and airborne electronic hardware.

Using its Vehicle Software Integration Lab (VSIL) at Joby's facility in Marina, CA, the Company will leverage flight simulation and hardware emulation capabilities to rapidly conduct thousands of pre-programmed tests necessary to validate and verify the performance of various aircraft software systems. A similar facility will be set up in San Jose, Costa Rica, to accelerate software verification efforts.

“For more than 30 years, Avionyx has been privileged to work closely with a number of aerospace companies to bring innovative aircraft to market with increasingly vital software systems,” said Larry Allgood, CEO of Avionyx. “Joby's aircraft is one of the most transformative projects that I have seen during my career, and our team is excited to play a part in making it a reality.”

Joby's piloted five-seat eVTOL aircraft can carry four passengers at speeds of up to 200 mph, with a maximum range of 150 miles on a single charge. With more than 10 years of development and over a thousand flight tests completed, Joby is targeting the launch of its aerial ridesharing service in 2024.

In addition to supporting Joby's FAA certification program, Avionyx, an AS-9100D-certified supplier, will continue its work in support of the broader aviation community.