第1958期:Flying Taxis to be Made in Ohio, Home of Wright Brothers

The same area where the Wright brothers developed the first airplane will soon see electric planes that take off and land vertically.

莱特兄弟开发第一架飞机的同一地区很快就会看到垂直起降的电动飞机。

The planes, called “flying taxis” will be produced under an agreement between the state of Ohio and Joby Aviation at Dayton International Airport.

这些被称为“飞行出租车”的飞机将根据俄亥俄州与乔比航空公司在代顿国际机场签署的协议进行生产。

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine told The Associated Press, “When you’re talking about air taxis, that’s the future.”

俄亥俄州州长迈克·德温 (Mike DeWine) 告诉美联社，“当你谈论空中出租车时，这就是未来。”

Around the world, electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, or flying taxis, are becoming more common. Still, questions remain about noise levels and charging demands.

在世界各地，电动垂直起降 (eVTOL) 飞机或飞行出租车正变得越来越普遍。 尽管如此，关于噪音水平和充电需求的问题仍然存在。

Developers say the planes are nearing the day when they will provide a way to move individual people or small groups from the top of buildings and parking spaces to their destinations.

开发商表示，这些飞机即将提供一种将个人或小团体从建筑物顶部和停车场运送到目的地的一天。

The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, lived and worked in Dayton, Ohio. In 1910, they opened the first U.S. airplane factory there. To connect with this history, Joby’s official announcement Monday took place at Orville Wright’s home, Hawthorn Hill, and ended with a special flight of a copy of the Wright Model B Flyer.

莱特兄弟奥维尔和威尔伯在俄亥俄州代顿生活和工作。 1910 年，他们在那里开设了美国第一家飞机工厂。 为了与这段历史联系起来，乔比周一在奥维尔·赖特 (Orville Wright) 位于山楂山 (Hawthorn Hill) 的家中发表了正式声明，并以莱特 B 型飞行器副本的特别飞行结束。

Engineers designed Joby’s production aircraft to transport a pilot and four passengers at speeds of up to 321.87 kilometers per hour. The aircraft can cover a distance of up to 160.93 kilometers. It is a quiet machine that can barely be heard in most cities, the company said. The plan is to place them in aerial ridesharing networks beginning in 2025.

工程师设计的乔比量产飞机能够以高达每小时 321.87 公里的速度运送一名飞行员和四名乘客。 该机的航程可达160.93公里。 该公司表示，这是一台安静的机器，在大多数城市几乎听不到声音。 计划从 2025 年开始将它们纳入空中共享网络。

Joby Aviation is a 14-year-old company that went public in 2021 and became the first eVTOL firm to receive a special kind of permission, or certification, from the U.S. Air Force. Its production efforts are supported by partnerships with Toyota, Delta Air Lines, Intel and Uber.

Joby Aviation 是一家拥有 14 年历史的公司，于 2021 年上市，成为第一家获得美国空军特殊许可或认证的 eVTOL 公司。 其生产工作得到了与丰田、达美航空、英特尔和优步合作的支持。

The $500 million project is supported by up to $325 million in payments from the state of Ohio. With the money, Joby plans to build an Ohio facility capable of delivering up to 500 aircraft a year and creating 2,000 jobs. The U.S. Department of Energy has invited Joby to apply for a loan to support development of the facility as a clean energy project.

这个耗资 5 亿美元的项目得到了俄亥俄州高达 3.25 亿美元的付款的支持。 Joby 计划利用这笔资金在俄亥俄州建造一家工厂，每年能够交付多达 500 架飞机并创造 2,000 个就业岗位。 美国能源部已邀请乔比申请贷款，以支持该设施作为清洁能源项目的开发。

Joby CEO JoeBen Bevirt told the AP that the company chose Ohio after a large and competitive search. Ohio's financial deal was not the largest, but the chance to bring the operation to the birthplace of aviation — with a workforce experienced in the field — led to the deal, he said.

Joby 首席执行官乔本·贝维尔特 (JoeBen Bevirt) 告诉美联社，该公司经过大规模的竞争性搜索后选择了俄亥俄州。 他说，俄亥俄州的财务交易并不是最大的一笔，但将业务带到航空发源地的机会——拥有在该领域经验丰富的劳动力——促成了这笔交易。

The announcement comes as a group of Ohio’s congressional representatives has recently increased efforts to draw the U.S. Air Force’s new U.S. Space Command headquarters or Space Force units to Ohio. There, too, state leaders point to the history of the Wrights, as well as Ohio-born astronauts John Glenn and Neil Armstrong.

这一消息发布之际，俄亥俄州的一群国会代表最近加大力度将美国空军新的美国太空司令部总部或太空部队部队吸引到俄亥俄州。 在那里，州领导人也提到了莱特兄弟以及俄亥俄州出生的宇航员约翰·格伦和尼尔·阿姆斯特朗的历史。