Air taxi startup Archer buys airport in Los Angeles
Archer is already the official air taxi partner for the 2028 Olympic Games, which will be held in Los Angeles. As this partnership is likely to be a huge showcase for the pioneer of electric aviation, it makes sense to think big: Archer plans to use the airport as an operational hub for its planned air taxi network in Los Angeles and as a test environment for its AI-powered aviation technologies.
Archer has signed a binding agreement to purchase Hawthorne Airport for a cash price of $126 million. The airport is located in the heart of Los Angeles, covers 32 hectares and comprises approximately 17,650 square metres of terminal, office and hangar space. The airport is home to Elon Musk’s companies Tesla, Space X and Boring Company.
The airport, also known as Jack Northrop Field, was built in the 1920s and has shaped the history of aviation and aerospace in the United States. The runway is only around 1,500 metres long, and there are no scheduled flights at the airport. Instead, it is mainly used for private jets and business flights and is intended to relieve the much larger LAX international airport, which is less than five kilometres away.
Archer plans to use the airport as an operational hub for its planned air taxi network in Los Angeles and to give it a key role in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Its proximity to some of the city’s biggest attractions, including SoFi Stadium, The Forum, the Intuit Dome and downtown Los Angeles, is convenient.
Archer announced the acquisition of the airport as part of its quarterly figures. The company, which is still awaiting the final approvals required to launch commercial operations with its electric vertical take-off aircraft called Midnight, reported no revenue for the third quarter of 2025, but a net loss of US$129.9 million. Among Archer’s successes for the quarter is a $650 million capital raise through the issuance of new shares. This is expected to increase the company’s liquidity to $2 billion.
Archer has also completed the acquisition of more than 300 patents from its insolvent German competitor Lilium and, with more than 1,000 patents, now considers itself one of the strongest players in the industry. Archer also believes it is well on track to begin commercial operations in Abu Dhabi soon, where test flights have been underway since the summer.
This article was first published by Florian Treiß for electrive’s German edition.
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