Archer pilots Midnight, advances to next phase of flight testing
Flight operations tested the composites-intensive aircraft’s VTOL and CTOL capabilities, important for its civil and defense operations.
Archer showcases piloted operations. Source | Archer Aviation
On June 2, Archer Aviation (Santa Clara, Calif., U.S.) announced it has begun the next phase of Midnight’s flight test program showcasing piloted flight. This phase builds on years of safe, autonomous flight testing across the company’s various electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft platforms, which have validated its 12 tilt-6 VTOL configuration. Midnight cruised at speeds up to 125 miles per hour and reached a maximum altitude of more than 1,500 feet above ground level during the flight.
The flight featured a conventional takeoff and landing demonstrating the robustness of Midnight’s landing gear that is capable of performing both vertical and conventional takeoff and landing operations. Through its design and certification process, Archer, government regulators and its customers (both civil and defense) have identified the importance of being able to conduct both landings as part of normal operations of the aircraft, as conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) provides operational flexibility and enhanced safety.
During this phase of Midnight’s flight test program, Archer’s test pilots will continue to test key elements of the aircraft, such as flight control responsiveness, stability and aerodynamic and control model validation in addition to gathering data to support its certification and commercialization efforts in both the U.S. and UAE.
“Put simply, the performance of Midnight continues to demonstrate the strengths of our design decisions for this aircraft platform,” notes Adam Goldstein, CEO and founder of Archer. “The aircraft’s VTOL and CTOL capabilities are a strong differentiator for us as they are critical for delivering an aircraft that can integrate into a wide range of operational scenarios while also providing enhanced safety.”
The piloted flight was flown by Archer chief test pilot Jeff Greenwood who joined the company in 2021, providing invaluable insight while focusing on cockpit design, including vendor selection for the display and other equipment. “Flying Midnight felt just like flying the simulator — everything responded exactly as we trained for, which is exactly what you hope for during a test flight,” says Greenwood.
Earlier this month, Archer made other announcements concerning Midnight, including an agreement for its use in the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics, as well as the company’s planned network and routes for eVTOLs in NYC.
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