Delta customers could soon take electric aircraft to and from airports

Delta customers will soon be able to get to and from the airport with the help of an electric aircraft.

On Oct. 11, the airline announced that they’d partnered with Joby Aviation, an electric air taxi startup, by investing $60 million to create a transfer service from travelers’ neighborhoods to the airport.

The investment could increase to $200 million if the company can “achieve substantive milestones,” Delta said.

“Delta always looks forward and embraces opportunities to lead the future, and we’ve found in Joby a partner that shares our pioneering spirit and commitment to delivering innovative, seamless experiences that are better for our customers, their journeys, and our world,” said Delta CEO Ed Bastian in a press release. “This is a groundbreaking opportunity for Delta to deliver a time-saving, uniquely premium home-to-airport solution for customers in key markets we’ve been investing and innovating in for many years.”

USA Today reported that the service would first be offered in New York and Los Angeles in the coming years.

The partnership would also be “mutually exclusive” across the United States and the United Kingdom for five years, the company said.

Delta customers will be transported in Joby’s four-passenger aircraft that can land close to travelers’ homes and take them right to the terminal, which Joby CEO JoeBen Bevirt said would only take a couple of minutes, USA Today reported.

Delta isn’t the first to delve into this type of service.

According to Forbes, United and American Airlines have also entered into partnerships with “flying taxi” aircraft aviation companies.

By Sarah Rogers, Scripps National.