Two Electric Aircraft Cross Tampa Bay in Florida Advanced Air Mobility Test Flight
TAMPA, Fla. — Florida's Department of Transportation hosted an advanced air mobility test flight at Tampa International Airport on October 30, sending two battery-powered electric aircraft across Tampa Bay in a public demonstration, the airport reported.
The flight, conducted with manufacturers Joby Aviation and BETA Technologies under coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration and the state DOT, took off from Albert Whitted Airport in downtown St. Petersburg and landed at Tampa International — retracing the route of the world's first scheduled airline flight on January 1, 1914, when pilot Tony Jannus carried former St. Petersburg mayor Abram Pheil, the first paying passenger, across the bay.
Florida is one of eight partners nationwide in the FAA's electric vertical takeoff and landing integration pilot program. The aircraft are envisioned for air taxi service, cargo logistics and emergency medical transport. The state DOT said follow-on "Future Flight Series" demonstrations will run along the busy Interstate 4 corridor.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Airside F at Tampa International Airport nighttime long exposure。Andrew Heneen 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Airside F at Tampa International Airport nighttime long exposure. By Andrew Heneen, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
