Air taxi firm Archer lands Olympic deal
The eVTOL in question, the Midnight, is a piloted electric air taxi capable of carrying up to four passengers at once. It can reportedly reach aerial speeds of up to 241km/h (150mph) and is powered by six battery packs, each of which support one pair of a total twelve onboard engines. Archer claims its eVTOLs can be charged ‘in minutes’, and are billed as being much quieter than traditional helicopters.
When the vehicle was first presented in 2022, the Midnight was stated to have a payload of over 1000 pounds and that it is optimised for short flights up to 20 miles with 10 minute charging periods between flights. The company received its FAA safety certification in 2024, allowing it to launch commercial flights in the USA.
With this Olympic partnership, Archer’s vehicles could be used for a variety of applications at the games, including VIP and fan transport via vertical take-off and landing hubs at key venues. They may also be used by emergency services or security. However, the final use cases are still yet to be confirmed. The ultimate goal of the partnership is to enable passengers to attend a ‘vertiport’ near key Olympic venues and then fly 10-20 minutes across the city to another destination on the company’s LA network.
This network will consist of vertiports at locations such as the Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles International Airport, Hollywood, Orange County, Santa Monica and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The Olympic partnership marks another milestone for the eVTOL firm. Earlier this month, the air taxi developer announced a partnership with United Airlines to develop plans for an air taxi network in New York City. This would enable passengers to travel from Manhattan to nearby airports in a reported 5-15 minutes.
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