Archer Aviation has completed construction of the factory in Covington, Georgia, where it plans to start producing the four-passenger Midnight eVTOL aircraft in early 2025. The California-based company said it hopes to achieve a production rate of two aircraft per month by the end of 2025 and 650 aircraft annually by 2030. 

On December 19, Archer announced that it received a certificate of occupancy for the 400,000-sq-ft factory, which is located adjacent to Covington Municipal Airport, some 40 miles east of Atlanta. This means that the facility is in compliance with local building codes and can now legally open to employees. Archer is now working to load in the tooling for the facility’s initial manufacturing line. 

“The completion of this facility is a testament to the state of the industry—shifting from R&D into commercialization,” said Archer CEO Adam Goldstein. “With construction on ARC now complete, our team is focused on the start of production planned for early next year. From there, it’s all about execution and scaling.” Archer has said the Covington site could potentially expand to support a production rate of 2,300 aircraft per year.

To commemorate the opening of the Covington factory, Archer held a ribbon-cutting ceremony with local officials and representatives from its manufacturing partner, European automotive group Stellantis. 

“Supporting Archer’s electric aircraft growth with our deep manufacturing expertise is a great opportunity for the two companies,” said Stellantis chief manufacturing and supply chain officer Arnaud Deboeuf. “Congratulations to the Archer team for this milestone. It is a significant step in our journey together as we take clean mobility to the sky.”

Stellantis's support for Archer was initiated under the leadership of the car maker's former CEO Carlos Tavares, who abruptly left the company in late November following a fall-out with the board over strategy. The company has said it will name his successor in 2025.

Meanwhile, rival eVTOL start-up Joby Aviation is preparing to open a large manufacturing plant for its four-passenger JAS4-1 aircraft in Dayton, Ohio and has been expanding its pilot production line in Marina, California. Beta Technologies is producing its electric airplanes and eVTOL aircraft at a factory in Burlington, Vermont.