Archer Aviation to Build eVTOL Vertiport Network in Southern California for LA28 Olympics

Archer Aviation plans to build a network of vertical takeoff and landing facilities across Southern California to support its electric air taxi service during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games. The company was named the exclusive air taxi provider for the games and for Team USA under an agreement with the LA28 Organizing Committee established in mid-2025.

Archer intends to operate its Midnight eVTOL aircraft during the 17-day Olympic Games, scheduled from July 14 to July 30, 2028, and the subsequent Paralympic Games; Olympic officials expect more than 15 million visitors. The Midnight is a piloted aircraft carrying up to four passengers and their carry-on luggage, using 12 electric motors and propellers for vertical takeoff and landing before transitioning to wing-borne flight at speeds up to 150 miles per hour. It is designed for back-to-back flights of 20 to 50 miles with about 10 minutes of battery charging between flights, produces zero emissions in flight, and generates 100 times less perceived sound energy than a traditional helicopter at cruising altitude.

Long Beach, which will host sailing, water polo, handball, rowing, canoe sprint, triathlon and other events, is a key focus of the network; Archer intends to work with Kilroy Realty on a vertiport there, with sites planned at Long Beach Airport and near the Queen Mary. A flight from Santa Monica to the Long Beach Convention Center is estimated at approximately 12 minutes, compared with 45 to 95 minutes by ground under typical traffic. Archer has acquired control of Hawthorne Airport, historically known as Jack Northrop Field, as its central hub, completing the first phase of transactions to acquire the airport's master lease from the City of Hawthorne in December 2025. The 80-acre site, established in the 1920s, has about 190,000 square feet of hangar space plus offices and passenger terminals, and Archer holds an option to acquire a 75% interest in the airport's fixed-base operation before December 31, 2026.

Beyond Long Beach, the planned network includes sites at Los Angeles International Airport, Santa Monica Airport, and Hollywood Burbank Airport. Archer is collaborating with the Los Angeles Rams on potential exclusive vertiports at Woodland Hills and at Hollywood Park, the 300-acre district around SoFi Stadium, with a partnership with the University of Southern California to convert existing campus heliports for the Midnight and support students, staff, and medical patients, and a separate agreement with AEG for a vertiport at the L.A. LIVE district. The LA28 partnership also includes support for emergency services and security personnel during the games. A flight between Los Angeles International Airport and downtown Los Angeles is estimated at $70 to $140 per seat, and Santa Monica to Long Beach is expected to cost $90 to $170; commercial bookings are not yet open, with Archer planning to open reservations in mid-to-late 2027 and a priority pre-reservation waiting list already established.

This case illustrates how eVTOL developers are using a fixed, high-visibility deadline — an Olympic Games with a known date and a large expected crowd — to bundle infrastructure acquisition, real-estate partnerships and public-safety support into a single exclusive contract rather than building a network speculatively. Owning the ground infrastructure, not just the aircraft, is the harder half of this business: securing a hub airport lease and stitching together vertiports with realty, sports and entertainment partners is what turns a certified aircraft into an actual transportation service.

The segment's economics still hinge on whether stated per-seat pricing of $70 to $140 for shorter routes and $90 to $170 for longer ones can be sustained once daily operations replace a single event, since the projected flight times of 20 to 50 miles with roughly 10-minute charging turnarounds depend on real-world dispatch reliability that has not yet been tested at Games scale.

The next dated checkpoints are Archer's option to acquire a 75% interest in Hawthorne Airport's fixed-base operation before December 31, 2026, and the planned opening of commercial reservations in mid-to-late 2027 — both will show whether the vertiport network and booking system are on track well ahead of the July 14, 2028 opening ceremonies.