Midnight eVTOL Transition Flight Lands Archer $55 Million More From Major Carmaker

Transitioning between these two configurations is not an easy thing to do, but there are some crews that have already achieved this. One of them, and to our knowledge the record holder for the size of the aircraft that achieved transition flight, is Archer.

The California-based company has been working on something called the Midnight for several years now, but it only announced the completion of the first transition flight for the machine earlier in June.

The Midnight is perhaps the most likely to succeed of all VTOLs currently being researched, and that's because it has the backing of one of the world's largest carmaking groups: Stellantis.

The owner of Dodge, Jeep, and Chrysler (among many other car brands) has been involved with Archer since 2020, and it has become a major investor in the company one year later. In the meantime, it has also taken on the role of contract manufacturer for the VTOLs Archer will build at a new facility now being erected in Georgia.

The Midnight transition flight took place on June 8, and involved the aircraft transitioning between horizontal and vertical flight at speeds of 100 mph (161 kph). That makes it one of the few vehicles of its kind to be able to do that, but also one of the largest – the thing tips the scales at 6,500 pounds (2,900 kg).

The moment seems to have impressed Stellantis enough for it to pump some more money into Archer. Earlier this week, the car company said it is giving the VTOL maker an extra $55 million as part of the strategic funding agreement between the two companies.

The money goes on top of the $110 million Stellantis invested in the startup throughout 2023 as part of either open market stock purchases (the latest such purchase, of 8.3 million shares, took place earlier in March) or funding investments.

It's unclear what the money will be used for, but they're certainly needed. Archer is currently putting together a manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia, and it should be ready for operations later this year.

It is there where the company plans to assemble some 650 aircraft per year, effectively making the site one of the largest assembly facilities in the aviation industry. And that's only the beginning, as the ultimate target is to have around 2,300 of these things made annually.

Why is the company so confident that the Midnight will succeed, whereas so many others keep failing? Well, Stellantis' involvement aside, we've got the VTOL's capabilities themselves.

The Midnight has been specifically designed to be operated as an air taxi. In Archer's own words, it is meant to replace "60–90-minute commutes by car with estimated 10–20-minute electric air taxi flights."

Unlike other similar contraptions being researched elsewhere, the Midnight will require an onboard pilot. Other than its operator, it will be capable of carrying an additional four passengers on "rapid back-to-back flights."

The thing is electric, and it moves up, down, and sideways courtesy of 12 electric motors. They are fed by six independent battery packs and are punchy enough to allow the Midnight to reach top speeds of 150 mph (241 kph).

The thing was only designed to operate for distance of 100 miles (160 km), but that should be more than enough for its role of in-city hopper, if you will. The minimal charge time (about ten minutes) between flights should ensure that the Midnight can stay in the air for most of the day, making money for its operator.

The VTOL's innate abilities have also caught the eye of the American military, which has already paid $142 million, the "largest total contract value of any eVTOL company," to get some Midnights into its arsenal.

The flying machine, which is already the recipient of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) final airworthiness criteria certification, is still in testing stages, with the runs scheduled to last a while longer. Over the next few months or so, we'll get to see the Midnight perform a series of piloted flight tests and simulations.

The flight tests will get more and more complex as the program moves forward, and it will soon also involve new in-air maneuvers – it remains to be seen how that pans out and how impressed Stellantis will be to throw some more money Archer's way.

The company intends to fly the first Midnights commercially sometime in 2026, starting in international markets, more specifically in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.