Electric air taxi maker Archer Aviation has shared more details of its envisioned network connecting Manhattan to New York’s major airports in cooperation with United Airlines.
The design, released on 17 April, calls for vertiports at John F Kennedy International, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International airports, “in addition to operations based at regional airports” and three helipads in New York City.
California Bay Area-based Archer says its all-electric Midnight air taxi is capable of operating 5-15min passenger flights that could circumvent ground vehicle traffic in heavily congested urban areas.
Archer is targeting “existing aviation properties” in and around New York, including a trio of regional airports – Westchester County airport, Teterboro airport in New Jersey and Republic airport on Long Island – as well as the East 34th Street Heliport, Downtown Skyport and West 30th Street Heliport.
“With its existing helicopter infrastructure, regulatory support and strong demand, I believe New York could be one of the first markets for air taxis in the United States,” says Archer chief executive Adam Goldstein.
Passengers would book air taxi flights as an add-on to airfare purchased through United, Archer says, feeding into United’s domestic and international networks.
Archer has announced plans for similar air taxi networks in San Francisco and Los Angeles. It and competitors Joby Aviation and Beta Technologies are seeking to certificate a new class of electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft with the US Federal Aviation Administration.
