Air taxi maker Archer Aviation gets FAA approval to start commercial services

Electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) leader Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE:ACHR) announced today that its subsidiary, Archer Air, earned its FAA Part 135 Air Carrier & Operator Certificate.

Archer manufactures electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, or eVTOLs, and received orders and support from United Airlines in 2021, which claims the new technology might reduce carbon emissions.

The Part 135 certificate indicates that Archer Air has designed and demonstrated to the FAA its compliance with the FAA's strict safety and operational standards to operate aircraft commercially.

Archer previously disclosed its FAA Part 145 certificate for specialist aircraft repair, in addition to its Part 135 certificate. This means Archer has the two FAA operational certificates needed to start air taxi operations when Midnight receives Type Certification.

"We are honored to receive the Part 135 Air Carrier & Operator Certificate from the FAA, which is another important stepping stone on the way to commencing commercial air taxi operations with our Midnight aircraft," said Adam Goldstein, Founder and CEO of Archer. "This milestone reflects our team's unwavering dedication to safety and operational excellence as we stand up one of the world’s first electric air taxi services for communities across the U.S. with a safe, sustainable and low noise transportation solution.”

Archer aims to revolutionize city travel by offering air taxi flights that can cut down on car commutes with estimated flight times of 10 20 minutes. These flights are designed to be safe sustainable, quiet and competitively priced compared to ground transportation. The Archer Midnight aircraft is a four passenger plane operated by a pilot, optimized for flights with minimal charging time in, between.