Archer Aviation's Midnight eVTOL to Serve LA28 Olympics, Targeting Uber Black Pricing
Why It MattersFormal Olympic backing and a growing multi-hub vertiport network signal eVTOL air taxis moving from prototype status toward scheduled urban passenger service.
Archer Aviation has announced a vertiport at LA Live in Los Angeles, the 11th planned node in a greater LA electric air taxi network that already includes LAX, SoFi Stadium, Hollywood Burbank Airport, and John Wayne Airport. LA28 organizers have formally named Archer the official air taxi provider for the 2028 Olympics, a first for the Games.
The aircraft, called Midnight, is an eVTOL carrying four passengers plus a pilot at speeds up to 150 mph, operating about 1,000 times quieter than a conventional helicopter at around 45 dBA in forward flight, using 12 propellers powered by six independent battery packs designed to tolerate individual motor or battery failures. Its optimal mission profile is 20-mile hops with roughly 10 minutes of charging between flights, turning hour-long LA drives into 10-20-minute trips.
Archer has completed Phase 3 of the FAA's four-phase Type Certification process and entered Phase 4, targeting first U.S. commercial operations around 2026, with Hawthorne Airport planned as the central hub for the LA network. An Archer representative told ABC7 the company is excited to eventually reach Uber Black pricing, with independent analyses placing early per-passenger-mile costs around $4-$5 and a long-term target near $1 per mile, while NASA-linked urban air mobility cost modeling estimates eVTOL fares ranging from $2.25 to $11 per mile compared to helicopter costs of roughly $10 per mile.
