Archer Aviation lands another big order for its futuristic air taxis

Archer Aviation, a leading electric aircraft company based in San Jose, California, is bringing its futuristic air taxis to Japan. The company will sell 100 of its Midnight battery-powered planes to Soracle, a joint venture between Japan Airlines and Sumitomo Corporation, in a deal valued at approximately $500 million.

Archer says Soracle plans to deploy its aircraft — which looks like a cross between a drone and a helicopter — “in cities where existing ground transportation is limited by traffic or geographic barriers,” the company said. Still, Archer will need to achieve “certain advanced aircraft delivery milestones” before Soracle authorizes pre-delivery payments.

The deal is the latest to bolster Archer’s ability to launch commercial air taxi services in cities around the world, which it is said to have plans to do so in the coming years. The Midnight is a four-seat plus-pilot aircraft with a range of up to 100 miles (almost 160 km), though it’s designed for back-to-back flights of 20-50 miles with minimal charging time in between. It can run at speeds of up to 150 mph (241 km/h) on pure battery power. And using tilt rotors, the Midnight is designed to take off and land vertically like a helicopter, then transition into forward flight like an airplane.

Archer says it will work with Soracle and Japan’s civil aviation agency to obtain the necessary permits and certifications. Archer says it has already begun discussions and “intends to formally apply for concurrent type certificate validation from the JCAB in the near future.” The company recently received a Part 135 aviation certification from the US Federal Aviation Administration, which the company needs to operate an on-demand air taxi service. It is currently seeking type certification for its Midnight air taxi, meaning the aircraft meets all FAA design and safety standards.

Alongside Archer, other eVTOL companies hope to win full FAA approval. It got a boost just a few weeks ago when the agency published much-anticipated final regulations for eVTOL vehicles, which it says will chart the way for “the future of air travel.” Archer praised FAA to “provide clear guidance on what is required for the safe operation of eVTOL aircraft in the United States”

Air taxis, sometimes misidentified by the mainstream media as “flying cars,” are essentially helicopters without the noisy, polluting gas engines (although they certainly have their own unique noise profile). In addition to Archer, companies such as Joby Aviation, Volocopter and Beta Technologies have claimed they are on the verge of launching services that will eventually scale nationwide. But others have crashed; German company Lilium recently said two of its subsidiaries were insolvent and could cease operations.