Air taxi startup Archer shows off small electric aircraft but no flight test

Описание: Reported today on The Verge

For the full article visit: https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/11/22...

Reported today in The Verge.

Air taxi startup Archer shows off small electric aircraft but no flight test

Archer Aviation, a Santa Clara-based aviation startup, unveiled a new electric aircraft Thursday that it says will serve as the basis for a future fleet of air taxis that will criss-cross cities and help alleviate traffic. But much like the majority of these startups, the company was not able to demonstrate its flying taxis doing the thing they're supposed to do: flying.

At an event in Los Angeles Thursday, complete with dramatic lighting, soaring visuals, and even a pair of drummers, the company showed off the 12-rotor aircraft, which it is calling Maker. Clocking in at 1,508kg (3,324lbs), the gleaming silver vehicle looks like an airplane / helicopter hybrid, with two wings sporting six rotors each jutting out from an egg-shaped fuselage.

It will have a range of 60 miles thanks to a 75kWh battery, and a top speed of 150mph. The entire wingspan is 40 feet. And when cruising 2,000 feet in the air, Archer says that the aircraft will be "100X quieter than a helicopter, generating only 45 decibels of sound" - similar to a loud bird call.

Maker is a "full-scale, two-passenger demonstrator aircraft," said Adam Goldstein, one of Archer's co-founders. "Its purpose is to serve as a certification test bed, and also to keep pushing our key enabling technologies."

Archer did not demonstrate Maker's flight capabilities, though, nor did it say when it anticipated receiving certification for test flights. The company has said it expects to eventually build a five-seater aircraft to serve as the main vehicle in its eventual commercial operation, which it plans to launch in 2024.

The type of aircraft Archer is developing is typically called a "flying car," though they rarely r