Electric air taxis go to war
Archer Aviation has unveiled 'Thunder,' an autonomous attack rotorcraft developed with Anduril for military use, marking a pivot from its core air taxi business. The company is seeking military partnerships to offset significant financial losses while it awaits regulatory approval for commercial operations.
Why it matters
This move highlights the trend of electric aviation startups diversifying into defense to secure revenue streams while commercial markets remain nascent.
Electric aviation is still in its infancy, but manufacturers are already looking beyond mere air taxi trips across cities. Today, one of the leading air taxi startups, San Jose-based Archer Aviation, unveiled a new aircraft it co-developed with defense technology company Anduril — though the platform is designed for both military and commercial uses, the companies said.
The new aircraft looks like a cross between Archer’s Midnight air taxi and a more established military vertical takeoff and landing aircraft like a V-22 Osprey. Anduril, which was founded by Palmer Luckey, unveiled the new variant, called Thunder, on Monday at the Farnborough Airshow in Hampshire, England. It’s intended to be a fully autonomous attack rotorcraft that flies alongside military crewed aircraft. Archer says it plans on unveiling a commercial version later this week.
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