Archer Aviation, the developer of electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles (eVTOLs), and the U.S. airline United Airlines will work together to promote the arrival of this type of aircraft.
According to the information provided, a committee will be formed in which the airline will provide its operational and maintenance experience while Archer advances in the development of its eVTOL. In this way, they will seek to advance aircraft in Urban Air Mobility (UAM).
«The committee will be chaired by Archer’s vice president of engineering, Dave Dennison, and Mauricio Angel, general manager of United Express TechOps Strategy and Operations,» according to a statement issued by Archer Aviation. It will also be comprised of leaders from both companies, who will contribute their expertise to the project.
Adam Goldstein, CEO of Archer, said that «the formation of this advisory committee further demonstrates Archer’s commitment to building an advanced infrastructure to support UAM at scale.»
«The committee was created to leverage United’s experience with industry-leading operational strategies in business aviation, a key tenet of our business strategy. We understand that adopting UAM is about more than just certifying our aircraft. United’s operational experience here will be invaluable as we work to deliver shared air travel at scale,» he added.
For his part, Michael Leskinen, president of United Airlines Ventures, said, «At United, we are proud to expand our collaboration with Archer with an advisory board designed to focus on the key operational strategies and electric aircraft performance needed to achieve our shared goal of sustainable urban air mobility, while addressing the scale and sophistication needed to operate successfully and, most importantly, deliver the high-quality user experience our customers require.»
Archer is developing the eVTOL Maker, which would be capable of traveling just over two hundred kilometers with a range of around one hundred kilometers. The aircraft -100% electric- could be an interesting alternative for passenger or cargo mobility in urban conglomerates.
