eVTOL FAA certification tracker: where every company stands
Joby Aviation is closest to FAA type certification. It is the only eVTOL developer globally to clear the FAA's Stage 4 conformity review and be granted Type Inspection Authorization (TIA); its first FAA-conforming aircraft flew in March 2026 and Type Inspection by FAA pilots is next. Archer Aviation has finalized airworthiness criteria for its Midnight aircraft and entered Phase 4 testing; Beta Technologies holds a special airworthiness certificate with type certification of the ALIA-250 in progress. Vertical Aerospace (VX4) and Lilium have FAA type certification referenced but no US airworthiness milestone, with Lilium in insolvency. EHang's EH216-S is type-certified by China's CAAC, not the FAA. No eVTOL holds an FAA type certificate yet. Every stage below cites its FAA filing.
Certification stages are sourced from the DEPLOY registry's FAA filings. How we verify.
A milestone is not a type certificate
Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) means the FAA has authorized its own pilots to begin type-inspection flight testing. It is the furthest any eVTOL has advanced, but it is not a type certificate: no eVTOL is FAA type-certified as of 2026. Each stage below is the exact milestone the FAA filing records, no more.
Certified elsewhere is not FAA-certified
EHang's EH216-S is type-certified by China's CAAC and operates commercially in China, but that is a different jurisdiction: FAA certification is not granted, and EHang is seeking FAA validation. DEPLOY keeps FAA, CAAC, and EASA separate. Where the registry holds no FAA certification-stage filing for a maker, this page says so as fact rather than inferring a stage.
Furthest along: Type Inspection Authorization
Cleared FAA Stage 4 conformity and granted Type Inspection Authorization (TIA). Verified from the DEPLOY registry's FAA filings.
| Provenance | Company | Aircraft | Certification stage | FAA milestone / filing | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Joby Aviation | Joby S4 (Model JAS4-1) | Stage 4 conformity cleared; Stage 5 TIA granted | FAA final airworthiness criteria published in the Federal Register for the Model JAS4-1 powered-lift eVTOL (special class under 14 CFR Part 21), effective April 8, 2024. First eVTOL developer to complete Stage 3. Cleared Stage 4 conformity review and was granted Type Inspection Authorization (TIA), the only eVTOL globally to reach that milestone. First FAA-conforming aircraft flew March 2026. Next phase is Type Inspection by FAA pilots. FAA Part 135 air carrier certificate held since 2022; the JAS4-1 is added to it after the type certificate issues. | 2025-11 (Stage 4 / TIA) | TIA - Type Inspection |
Airworthiness criteria finalized, flight testing under way
FAA airworthiness criteria finalized and flight-test certificates issued; type certificate not yet granted. Verified from the DEPLOY registry's FAA filings.
| Provenance | Company | Aircraft | Certification stage | FAA milestone / filing | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Archer Aviation | Archer Midnight (M001) | Airworthiness criteria finalized; Phase 4 in progress | FAA finalized the airworthiness criteria for the Archer M001 (Midnight) and a Special Airworthiness Certificate was issued for flight testing. Archer completed Phase 3 certification and began FAA Phase 4, which demonstrates compliance with FAA airworthiness requirements through formal testing and analysis. Type certificate pending. | 2026-05 (Phase 4 began) | Phase 4 - TC pending |
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Beta Technologies | ALIA-250 (CX300 conventional variant) | Special airworthiness certificate; TC in progress | FAA multipurpose special airworthiness certificate for the CX300 production aircraft. Type certification of the ALIA-250 eVTOL is in progress. No type certificate granted. | N/A | SAC - TC in progress |
Type certification in progress, no US airworthiness milestone
FAA type certification referenced or in progress, without a US airworthiness milestone on record. Verified from the DEPLOY registry's FAA filings.
| Provenance | Company | Aircraft | Certification stage | FAA milestone / filing | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Vertical Aerospace | VX4 | FAA type certification in progress | FAA type certification in progress for the VX4. EASA is the primary certification path. No FAA type certificate granted. | N/A | TC in progress (EASA-primary) |
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Lilium | Lilium Jet | FAA type certification referenced; status uncertain | FAA type certification referenced in the FAA Aerospace Forecast. Lilium filed for insolvency in December 2024; type certificate status is uncertain. | N/A | Uncertain (insolvency 2024-12) |
No FAA type certificate: certified elsewhere or not yet filed
Either type-certified in another jurisdiction (not the FAA) or with no FAA certification-stage filing on record in the DEPLOY registry. Absence reflects no verified FAA milestone on record, not a claim that none exists.
| Provenance | Company | Aircraft | Certification stage | FAA milestone / filing | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | EHang | EH216-S | CAAC type-certified (China); not FAA | CAAC Type Certificate (October 13, 2023), Production Certificate, and Standard Airworthiness Certificate for the EH216-S, the world's first eVTOL to receive all three; commercially operating in China. FAA certification is not granted; EHang is seeking FAA validation. | 2023-10-13 (CAAC TC) | CAAC TC - no FAA cert |
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Eve Air Mobility | Eve eVTOL | No FAA type-certification filing on record | Prototype stage. No FAA certification-stage filing is held in the DEPLOY registry for the Eve eVTOL. Absence reflects no verified FAA milestone on record, not a claim that none exists. | N/A | No FAA filing on record |
| DEPLOY VERIFIED | Wisk Aero | Wisk Generation 6 | No FAA type-certification filing on record | No FAA regulatory filing is held in the DEPLOY registry for Wisk Aero. Absence reflects no verified FAA milestone on record, not a claim that none exists. | N/A | No FAA filing on record |
Get one email when an eVTOL gets FAA type certification.
Certification stages are drawn from the DEPLOY registry's FAA filings (us_faa jurisdiction): each row cites the exact FAA milestone the filing records. FAA, CAAC, and EASA are kept separate; where no FAA filing is on record for a maker, the page states that as honest-absence rather than inferring a stage. How we verify
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