Electric air taxis go to war

Archer Aviation revealed the Thunder hybrid vertical takeoff and landing aircraft that it co-developed with Palmer Luckey’s Anduril.

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 International 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.

Thunder differs from Midnight in that it’s a series hybrid powertrain, as opposed to a fully electric one. The hybrid system will help the aircraft achieve significantly longer range “while still maintaining the necessary precision to closely optimize power through the full range of flight conditions,” Archer says. Air taxi companies are increasingly turning to hybrid power to expand beyond air taxi applications and tap into broader markets. Archer said it foresees Thunder being used in military strikes, cargo shipment, remote logistics, and other operations in hard-to-reach locations.

Air taxi companies are also looking to military partnerships to help stem their enormous losses. Air taxis have yet to obtain the necessary approvals in most markets that would allow them to launch their commercial service and bring in more money. Archer lost $217.7 million in the first quarter of 2026, having generated only $1.6 million in revenue. Archer has said it intends to launch its air taxi service as soon as 2026, with the first market likely to be Abu Dhabi.

Archer has already signaled its interest in branching out into military and defense programs. Last year, the air taxi company said it would license its electric vertical and takeoff technology to Anduril, including supplying its electric powertrain and other tech to the defense contractor’s Omen drone program. Archer has also delivered one of its Midnight eVTOL aircraft to the US Air Force as part of its evaluation program.

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