United Airlines will launch an electric flying taxi in Chicago

by time news

Image: Archer

In a moment the Passover holiday is coming and with it the air train of many Israelis who went on holiday abroad. But even before getting on the plane, there is this rather annoying part of getting to the airport, which is usually accompanied by traffic jams, taxi drivers who suddenly “have no credit” or limited trains So while we make our way to Israel, we can be jealous of Chicago, where a new and real electric flying taxi service has been announced directly to the airport.

10 minutes to the airport

Unlike all kinds of aviation startups that mainly present a POC, in this case it is a collaboration between Archer Aviation and none other than United Airlines. Archer is a company that develops aircraft that take off vertically, and United Airlines is… United Airlines. The two announced a flight path for a flying electric taxi, from the city of Chicago to O’Hara Airport. The location is not accidental, as United’s headquarters is in Chicago, and its home port is also there.

Archer’s aircraft is called Midnight, and according to the company it is capable of flying for a distance of 100 miles (about 160 km), but has been designed so that it can make more efficient flights of about 20-50 miles (about 32 km) , and stop for a quick charge of about 12 minutes between flights to operate around the clock. This taxi is powered by 6 batteries, each of which operates a pair of electric motors, and together, Midnight is able to reach a maximum speed of about 240 km/h. It is important to note that this is not an autonomous aircraft, and it is currently adapted to a human pilot, with the addition of 4 more people With luggage. If you are afraid of a crash, the company claims that it is actually a safer tool than any fuel-based aircraft, because the engines contain fewer moving parts (which also means cheaper and simpler maintenance), and even if some parts fail in the tool, it can still complete the flight In terms of noise, the company claims that the vehicle is significantly quieter than a helicopter, and that the level of noise heard by people on the ground will be a thousand times that of a helicopter.


Today, the trip between Chicago and the airport by car can take between 35 minutes and an hour, and even by train you will have to take 45 minutes into account. But according to Archer’s estimates, the ride in her flying taxi will take only about 10 minutes. The route will open in 2025, with the company later launching more takeoff stations throughout the city. What is missing in the message of the two, is a price. Archer claims that the price of the flight will be “competitive”, but it seems to us that any reasonable person can guess that the cost of a ticket will not amount to a few tens of dollars – but that this pleasure will be reserved for those with the deeper pockets.

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