Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE: ACHR) has announced that Maker, Archer’s eVTOL demonstrator aircraft, completed its first successful hover flight. The flight marks the completion of the company’s first full and complete systems test and validation of every hardware and software component working as intended to move the aircraft into the air.
The flight test was completed at 10.30am PT on December 16th, 2021, and also resulted in the successful checkout of the company’s flight control system in flight and the end-to-end close of flight software.
Maker aircraft is an autonomous two-seater eVTOL aircraft that has been certified for flight testing by the FAA.
Archer says it will now move forward with an ongoing extensive flight test campaign into 2022 and beyond.
Archer also plans to unveil its piloted, four-seat production-intent aircraft in 2023.
Brett Adcock, Archer co-founder and co-CEO, says: “The past six months have been an incredible journey, from unveiling Maker to watching it take its first flight. It’s been humbling to build a leading eVTOL company and educate the public on clean transportation alternatives. Today is a milestone for both Archer and the future of travel. I’m extremely proud of this exceptional team.”
“Everything we’ve accomplished this year, every milestone hit and partnership struck, was all with one goal in mind: developing both an aircraft and a UAM ecosystem that could scale and change the face of intra-city travel,” adds Adam Goldstein, Archer co-founder and co-CEO. “With our first hover flight now completed, we’re one major step closer to that goal and have proven that Archer can work at a fast pace without sacrificing safety or quality. Our team stands ready to continue that pace as we work toward launching an aerial ridesharing service in late 2024.”
Marc Lore, renowned entrepreneur and first investor in Archer, comments: “As an early investor in Archer, it’s been rewarding to watch Archer grow as a company and really help shape the industry. What began as a mission-driven company to change how we think of daily transportation, has today proven that passion and mission can yield incredible results,”. I congratulate the whole team on today’s first hover flight accomplishment and look forward to seeing the way Archer’s unique mode of transportation shapes our cities of tomorrow.”
Archer‘s team is based in Palo Alto, California. Its investors include Stellantis and United Airlines.
