SkyDrive, an eVTOL aircraft manufacturer based in Japan, together with a consortium led by Nomura Real Estate Development, has announced the selection of its joint proposal for phase one of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's ‘eVTOL Implementation Project’. The consortium includes ANA Holdings, East Japan Railway Company, Aero Toyota Corporation, Seibu Holdings and Nikken Sekkei. The project will utilise aircraft manufactured by both SkyDrive and consortium partner, Joby Aviation for various use cases.

In this project, SkyDrive aims for implementation across multiple-use cases by leveraging the distinct uniqueness of the SkyDrive and Joby aircraft. It plans to conduct feasibility studies for potential vertiport locations, develop these sites based on the findings, enhance social acceptance through mock-up exhibitions and public open house events and select final vertiport locations from Fiscal Year 2028 onward, with an eye toward commercialisation in urban areas.

Through these initiatives, SkyDrive will strengthen urban functions via the early implementation of eVTOLs within Tokyo and communicate the blueprint for next-generation mobility to the world.

eVTOLs are highly anticipated as a technology that will revolutionise the movement of people and goods by avoiding traffic congestion and enabling rapid material transport, which will not only enhance people's quality of life but also contribute to improving the attractiveness and global presence of the city.

In its ‘2050 Tokyo Strategy’, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has specified the ‘refinement of the roadmap’ and the ‘establishment of an implementation scheme (implementation project)’ as concrete steps toward the social implementation of eVTOLs, with the goal of implementation in urban areas by 2030. However, achieving this requires solving various challenges, including enhancing public acceptance, examining technical issues such as airspace management and ensuring consistency with urban planning.

To resolve these challenges and facilitate the early implementation of eVTOLs in Tokyo, this project aims to conduct demonstration flights in the coastal and river areas within Fiscal Year 2026, followed by pre-commercial service implementation within Fiscal Year 2027.

In August 2025, ANA Holdings, one of the consortium members and Japan's largest airline group holding company, commenced full-scale consideration with Joby Aviation to establish a joint venture aimed at providing air taxi services in Japan. Adhering to the highest safety standards developed by the ANA Group, it plans to launch a safe, comfortable and rapid air taxi service for daily use by many people, focusing initially on urban areas within Japan, beginning with the Tokyo metropolitan area. In the future, it aims to deploy more than 100 aircraft and expand the service throughout Japan.

Founded in July 2018 with the mission of ‘leading the once-in-a-century mobility revolution’, SkyDrive is developing eVTOLs primarily based in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, to realise a future where ‘the sky is used for daily travel’. Manufacturing has commenced at a Suzuki Group factory in Iwata City, Shizuoka Prefecture. The company is involved in regulatory framework design as a member of the Public-Private Council, successfully conducted Japan's first public manned flight test in 2020 and performed a demonstration flight at the Osaka-Kansai Expo in 2025. SkyDrive continues to dedicate efforts to aircraft development, aiming to launch commercial service around 2028.

Joby is a company that develops eVTOL aircraft, headquartered in California. The company plans to commence air mobility services in Dubai in 2026. As a new form of air mobility, the quiet, high-speed connection between locations will help alleviate urban congestion and traffic jams and facilitate the transition to sustainable modes of transportation. The company has expanded its bases to Santa Cruz, San Carlos and Marina in California; Washington DC; and Munich, Germany, and currently employs over 2,000 people.

Last week, Archer Aviation announced that the Japan Airlines-led consortium, which features Archer's Midnight aircraft, has also been selected by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to participate in phase one of Tokyo's eVTOL Implementation Project.