Odys Aviation, the manufacturer of hybrid-electric aircraft, will establish its regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), under the Ministry of Economy’s NextGen FDI program. 

The headquarters will include a high-volume assembly line and maintenance facility for the company’s hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft. The site will create 2,000 jobs and export the first aircraft manufactured under the “Made in the UAE” certification.

The NextGen FDI program will enable Odys to enter the UAE market with limited barriers, paving the way for the company to scale its operations by launching regional flights and air taxi services using its electric aircraft. 

James Dorris, co-founder and CEO at Odys, acknowledged that the hybrid-electric VTOL being developed will bring about “brand new opportunities” for domestic air connectivity in the UAE and regional flying between key Gulf Cooperation Council cities.

“We are proud to partner with the UAE Ministry of Economy. The UAE is the perfect market for Odys to establish a footprint and we are excited to work collaboratively with UAE entities to develop an advanced air mobility ecosystem,” he added. “By bringing Odys to the UAE, we aim to partner with the existing strong aviation sector and leverage local supply chain opportunities.”

The announcement to establish a headquarters in Abu Dhabi comes after Odys secured investment from Knighthood Global, an Abu Dhabi-based advisory services firm, at the beginning of May 2023. 

Odys’ aircraft will feature all-electric propulsion for a range of 320 km and a hybrid-electric range exceeding 1,200 km. The California-based firm aims to develop a full-scale prototype of its hybrid-electric VTOL by 2025 and launch it commercially two years later. So far, the start-up has received pre-orders for more than 1,200 aircraft from operators and airlines globally.