Beta Completes First Test Flights in U.S. Electric Air Taxi Program

Beta on Friday said it wrapped up the first test flights in the U.S. government's sweeping electric vertical takeoff and landing pilot program aimed at making the vision of flying taxis a reality.

The aerospace company, which is backed by Amazon, said the flights transported manufactured organs from United Therapeutics between airports in Maryland and Virginia. The flights totaled about 275 nautical miles.

"Today's successful missions, set the stage for routine medical applications through electric flight at a much lower cost nationwide," Beta CEO Kyle Clark said in a release.

For years, the industry has touted flying cars as a solution to congested traffic, with medical, cargo and defense applications. Beta is one of several electric air taxi makers racing to secure Federal Aviation Administration certification and to start flying passengers commercially. Timelines have been pushed off as certification proves harder to achieve.

President Donald Trump's eVTOL pilot program, launched through an executive order last year, brought an opportunity to speed up approval.

The program, spearheaded by the Department of Transportation and the FAA, spans eight projects across 26 states. Beta is the most active company, participating in seven of them.

The government initially said testing would begin this summer.

Beta's eVTOL aircraft is expected to achieve certification in 2028. The company also makes a conventional takeoff and landing craft on track for 2027.

The company's shares have lost about half their value since its initial public offering in November.

Appetite across the industry has soured, with both Joby and Archer Aviation shares down by over a third this year. The U.K.'s Vertical Aerospace has lost 68% of its value. Some companies are also in the middle of heated court battles.