Joby Aviation has resumed flight testing of its second pre-production prototype aircraft at the company's pilot production facility in Marina, California.

The aircraft first flew in January, having received approval to fly from both the FAA and the US Air Force. To date, it has made 38 flights, reaching speeds of more than 90 miles per hour, in support of the company's aircraft type certification programme.

“We're excited to be back in the air with our second pre-production prototype aircraft, building on the tremendous flight test achievements our team has made to date,” says head of programmes and systems Didier Papadopoulos. “Last year alone we flew more than 5,300 miles, generating 65 terabytes of flight test data and demonstrating an endurance of 154.6 miles on a single charge.”

Joby's internal safety review board lifted the company's pause on flight testing earlier this week, which it voluntarily introduced following an accident involving the first pre-production prototype earlier this year. Joby continues to work closely with the FAA and National Transportation Safety Bureau to investigate the accident and provides regular briefings on its flight test plans.