California-based Archer Aviation is planning to reveal the initial production version of Midnight during a special event at its new San Jose headquarters on November 16.
Midnight is a fully electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi designed to carry four passengers plus one pilot to a range of 100 miles on a single charge. However, Archer says it’s mostly intended for shorter, successive flights of around 20 miles, with about 10 minutes of charging time required between each trip.
The company announced in August that it had completed the preliminary design review for the new aircraft, which it says is on track to enter service in the U.S. in 2025. Also in August, United Airlines placed a $10 million down payment for 100 of Archer’s eVTOL air taxis, which the airline plans to use to transport passengers to and from its main hubs.
Archer revealed its first eVTOL prototype, Maker, in June 2021. Maker is a two-seat technology demonstrator that the company has flown more than 1,000 times since its test flight campaign began in December. Although Archer is now focused on developing Midnight, the company isn’t ready to wrap up Maker’s flight campaign just yet.
“Maker’s flight test program continues to provide vital data to support the development and design of Midnight,” Archer co-founder and CEO Adam Goldstein said.
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