Archer Aviation and United Airlines announced today a collaboration to create a commercial air taxi route in Chicago. The businesses want to begin flying between downtown Chicago and O’Hare International Airport in 2025.
Chicago’s airport commute makes it a perfect testbed for flying taxis, in addition to having United’s headquarters and busiest hub. For example, depending on traffic, the journey to or from O’Hare in the western suburb of Rosemont might take anywhere from 35 minutes to more than an hour; even using one of the city’s elevated trains can take roughly 45 minutes. Nonetheless, Archer anticipates that a journey in one of its air taxis from O’Hare to its destination at a downtown helipad will take only 10 minutes. The programme will initially be confined to the mainline O’Hare / downtown route, but the firms hope to expand it to include smaller pathways in adjacent areas in the future.
Without delving into specifics, Archer defines the planned service as “cost competitive” for travellers. Even if it is first confined to wealthy business visitors, the programme should be beneficial to the environment. Archer’s air taxis are powered by electric motors and batteries and emit no pollutants. “This innovative new technology will further decarbonize our modes of transportation, moving us one step closer to combating climate change,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot stated. “I’m delighted that Chicagoans will be among the first in the country to experience this innovative, convenient mode of transportation.”
The collaboration is the most recent in United’s aggressive investment in flying taxis. Last year, the airline placed an order for at least 200 electric flying taxis from Eve Air Mobility, following a $10 million deposit with Archer the month before.
