Archer’s Air Taxi Prototype Returns to the Air

Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi developer Archer Aviation announced Tuesday it is expanding its flight testing program—using for the first time a tilt propeller system during hover.

Thom Patterson

Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at 03:29 PM ET

Verified

Archer Aviation announced Tuesday a new flight test campaign of its Maker air taxi demonstrator. [Courtesy: Archer Aviation]

Key Takeaways:

Archer Aviation is expanding its flight testing for the "Maker" eVTOL air taxi, successfully using its tilt propeller system for active control during hover for the first time.
The company remains on track to test full transition from vertical to horizontal flight by the end of 2022, a critical milestone for eVTOL development.
Archer aims to receive FAA certification by late 2024 to launch an aerial ridesharing service, noting that no eVTOL has achieved type certification yet.

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Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi developer Archer Aviation (NYSE: ACHR) announced Tuesday it is expanding its flight testing program—using a tilt propeller system for the first time during hover.

Six months after the first flight of its Maker prototype at Archer’s California test facility, chief engineer Geoff Bower revealed the aircraft resumed flights last week, when engineers “saw the first use of the tilt propeller system (TPS) for active control during hover and the system performed as expected.”