Archer Announces Launch of Urban Air Mobility Network Partnerships with Los Angeles and Miami by 2024
It’s been a big year for the team at Archer. This January, we announced a first-of-its kind OEM agreement with Stellantis, one of the largest auto manufacturers in the world, granting us access to their low-cost supply chain, advanced composite material capabilities, and engineering and design experience. A few weeks later, we unveiled a business combination agreement with Atlas Crest Investment Corp, valuing Archer at $3.8 billion, and a $1bn aircraft purchase agreement with United Airlines, making Archer the only eVTOL company with a commercial order for aircraft.
Today, we’re excited to announce another milestone: the development of UAM networks with cities across the nation. As we prepare for manufacturing at scale, Archer is dedicated to working with major US cities on plans to integrate urban aircraft into existing transportation networks and land use policies. This ladders up to our mission to not only build a certified aircraft on an accelerated timeline, but to scale adoption, as well. Our first partnership with Los Angeles was announced in late February and now, we’re proud to share that Miami has also been added to this list of cities we plan to build networks in.
Our collaboration with Miami will bring quick, safe, affordable everyday flight to Southern Florida by 2024, addressing some of the area’s mobility challenges and providing a new option for people to travel more freely in and around Miami’s dense metropolitan areas. That means quicker commutes to work, smooth trips to visit friends, and the ability to explore new local destinations.
Partnering with progressive cities like Miami will help make our vision for Archer a reality for everyday commuters. Over time, we’ll solidify plans to integrate our vehicles into the fabric of cities seamlessly. Our infrastructure will center around ‘vertiports’ — much like current helipads where our aircraft can take off and land safely within densely populated areas. Because our aircraft are electric, autonomous and incredibly accurate we don’t need huge concrete infrastructure, fuel trucks and other obtrusive buildings and equipment. These vertiports will also act as electric charging stations for our aircraft to ensure maximum uptime for every single Archer vehicle. Communities will use our ecosystem for commuting, but more than this, we imagine these aircraft opening up an entirely new way to live, work and play with a whole new perspective on the world.
We’re grateful to Miami’s Mayor, Francis Suarez, for his support of innovative modes of transportation. This particular partnership is especially meaningful to us, having both graduated from the University of Florida. It’s a special full circle moment to be planning future transportation networks in a state which means so much to us personally and influenced so much of what we do today.
As we usher in this future of transformation, we’re proud to welcome two of Uber Elevate’s co-founders, Nikhil Goel and Mark Moore, to Archer’s advisory board. Goel and Moore co-authored the industry-famed “Elevate” white paper on aerial ridesharing and spent four years advancing the UAM space to pave the way for the future of transportation. Their deep expertise in this space only adds to the decades of experience on the existing Archer team, made up of eVTOL trailblazers who helped shape the industry, and continues to cement our company as the eVTOL leader.
We’ve made great progress and there’s more milestones to come. As 2021 unfolds, we look forward to announcing additional city partnerships — and unveiling our first full-scale demonstrator aircraft. We’re excited for our next chapter and hope you’ll follow along.
