Skyports Infrastructure has secured the world's first regulatory certification for a purpose-built commercial vertiport, with the UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) approving DXV for eVTOL operations.

The certification followed a GCAA assessment covering DXV's infrastructure, physical characteristics, operational procedures, safety management arrangements and emergency preparedness. Located adjacent to Dubai International Airport, the facility spans four storeys and around 3,100 square metres, with two dedicated take-off and landing areas and rapid charging infrastructure for electric aircraft, including Joby Aviation's Global Electric Aviation Charging System.

Once commercial operations begin, DXV will be able to handle up to 170,000 passengers and 42,000 aircraft movements a year. It also offers intermodal connectivity, sitting close to the Emirates Metro station and featuring an integrated multistorey car park.

Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, director general of the GCAA, says: “The certification of the world's first purpose-built commercial vertiport is a historic achievement for the UAE and a defining moment for the future of aviation.”

Duncan Walker, chief executive of Skyports Infrastructure, adds: “With DXV now certified and construction of the wider Dubai air taxi network progressing at pace, we are one step closer to launching commercial air taxi operations.”

DXV is the first and primary hub in Dubai's planned air taxi network, which Skyports is developing in collaboration with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) and Joby Aviation. The facility received GCAA technical design approval in late 2024, following groundbreaking in the fourth quarter of that year, and reached its topping-out construction milestone at the Dubai Airshow in November 2025, before achieving technical completion in April 2026. Three further vertiports are planned for Dubai Marina, Dubai Mall and Palm Jumeirah, with construction at Dubai Marina already under way. Joby's S4 eVTOL aircraft, which carries a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 200mph, completed piloted test flights in Margham in June 2025 in collaboration with the RTA, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, GCAA and Dubai Air Navigation Services, as the companies work towards launching commercial air taxi services.