Situated less than three miles from LAX and close to major city attractions including SoFi Stadium, The Forum, Intuit Dome, and Downtown LA, Hawthorne Airport – also known as Jack Northrop Field – spans 80 acres and includes approximately 190,000 square feet of terminal, office, and hangar facilities. Built in the 1920s, the site has long been tied to Southern California’s aerospace heritage.

Archer intends to revitalise the airport, transforming it into a cornerstone of its advanced air mobility ecosystem. It will serve a pivotal role in the upcoming LA28 Olympic Games, supporting air taxi operations and hosting trials for Archer’s next-generation AI-driven systems for air traffic and ground operations management.

The acquisition underscores Archer’s strategy to integrate technology, infrastructure, and operations into a single scalable network. United Airlines’ Chief Financial Officer, Michael Leskinen, commented:

“Archer’s trajectory validates our conviction that eVTOLs are part of the next generation of air traffic technology that will fundamentally reshape aviation. Their vision for an AI-enabled operations platform isn’t just about eVTOLs, it’s about leveraging cutting-edge technology to move people safely and efficiently in our most congested airspaces.”

In the third quarter, Archer strengthened its balance sheet with $650 million in new equity funding, bringing its total liquidity to over $2 billion. It also expanded its Midnight aircraft’s flight test envelope, achieving a 55-mile piloted flight lasting 31 minutes and reaching altitudes of up to 10,000 feet. Demonstration flights at the California International Airshow highlighted the aircraft’s quiet operation to tens of thousands of spectators.

Further bolstering its innovation pipeline, Archer finalised the acquisition of Lilium’s patent portfolio, adding roughly 300 intellectual property assets covering technologies in ducted fans, high-voltage systems, and electric propulsion. This brings the company’s total portfolio to over 1,000 global patents, one of the strongest in the sector.

On the international front, Archer began test and demonstration flights of its Midnight aircraft in Abu Dhabi as part of its commercial deployment in the UAE, while expanding its footprint in Asia through new partnerships with Korean Air and Japan’s Soracle joint venture between Japan Airlines and Sumitomo.

Reflecting on the company’s progress, Archer’s founder and CEO Adam Goldstein said,

“The era of advanced aviation has arrived — not as a distant vision, but as a tangible reality. At Archer, we are not waiting for the future; we are building it. The time to seize this transformative opportunity is now.”