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Air taxi plans are taking off: Miami on Archer’s shortlist for 2025 launch and Venture Miami convenes summit

Nancy Dahlberg
Nancy Dahlberg
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By Nancy Dahlberg

Will air taxis touch down in South Florida in the next couple of years? With recent news from Archer Aviation to report, our region appears to be a step closer to that reality.

Archer, one of the companies leading the charge to bring electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft service to our state and nationwide in partnership with United Airlines, has signed a memorandum of understanding with fixed-base operator Atlantic to establish sites for electric aircraft operations, or vertiports, in America’s most congested cities – Miami, LA, San Francisco and New York City.

Atlantic and Archer anticipate launching service across these initial locations in 2025, and a handful of other companies are eying the Magic City too. Archer’s announcement comes shortly after Venture Miami hosted a summit on bringing urban air mobility to the region.

Archer aims to  replace 60- to 90-minute commutes by car with estimated 10- to 20-minute electric air taxi flights that are safe, sustainable, low noise, and cost-competitive, the company said. Archer’s recently unveiled Midnight [pictured above] is a piloted, four-passenger aircraft designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time in between flights.

 “These initial eVTOL vertiport locations will provide a launching pad for future expansion across Atlantic’s portfolio and ensure that our Midnight aircraft has safe, centrally located landing facilities for our future passengers,” said Nikhil Goel, Archer’s Chief Commercial Officer, in a statement.

Separately, Joby and Delta Air Lines announced the same day that they anticipate launching eVTOL service in New York and Los Angeles. In earlier reports, Joby indicated the Miami market could be one of the initial launch sites but the Magic City is still in its expansion plans.

The collaboration between Joby and Atlantic will focus first on adding eVTOL charging infrastructure to Atlantic’s existing sites in New York City and Los Angeles and analyze how Joby’s aircraft can operate from these locations alongside traditional and other electric aircraft to “ensure we’re well positioned to deliver a meaningful service for our customers,” said JoeBen Bevirt, founder and CEO of Joby Aviation, in a statement. 

Let’s look at where South Florida stands with the other companies eyeing South Florida. Refresh Miami has been covering this space since early 2021.

In November, Miami-based  Global Crossing Airlines Group, which operates the charter and cargo airline GlobalX, announced the creation of UrbanX Air, a subsidiary formed to pioneer the integration of Urban Air Mobility in South Florida as eVTOL operators. The future could include eVTOL hops between Miami International Airport and the Miami Beach convention center or between the downtowns of Miami and Fort Lauderdale and Hard Rock Stadium, for example.

In 2022, GlobalX, a U.S.-based 121 domestic flag and supplemental airline with more than 600 aviation professionals, signed a letter of intent to purchase 200 eVTOLs from Eve Air Mobility, a subsidiary of aircraft manufacturer Embraer and a leader in global eVTOL development, with delivery of its first Eve eVTOL expected in 2026. Meanwhile, UrbanX and Eve are collaborating to identify takeoff and landing locations for key eVTOL routes throughout the region.

There are at least two other companies reportedly also wanting to make Miami an initial market over the next few years: Supernal, an eVTOL service planned by Hyundai Motor Group,  and Lilium, a German company that plans rides up to 180 miles in Florida. However, no company has received FAA approval in the US yet. A local startup, Doroni Aerospace, is also building an eVTOL vehicle, but for personal use. What’s more, electric sea gliders may also be getting into the Miami airspace soon.

Earlier this month, city, county and industry leaders came together for an Advanced Air Mobility Summit at Miami City Hall. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez kicked off the event, and government experts from the FAA, the US Department of Transportation, the City of Miami, the Miami Dade County Aviation Department and the Miami-Dade Transportation Planning Organization, and Boca Raton Airport Arthority came together with industry leaders from Skyports, Ferrovial Airports, Joby Aviation and FPL to discuss trends in the industry, regional collaboration and building pathways to the future. The summit also included brainstorming sessions on vertiport design and airspace integration. Venture Miami’s Head of Research Burhan Sebin said there will be more summits and opportunities to get involved.

“This event was not just a conference; it was a testament to Miami’s dedication to AAM and a collaborative effort to shape the future of urban air mobility. Together, we’re not just dreaming about the future, we’re actively building it. Let’s keep pushing the boundaries and making Miami a hub for innovation and technological excellence,” Venture Miami shared on LinkedIn.

Indeed, the Advanced Air Mobility Committee, led by Sebin and Keith Carswell, seeks industry, academia, and government partners with diverse backgrounds and expertise to contribute to the effort to bring advanced transportation solutions to our skies.

The committee will dive into policy development and implementation; community engagement and education, regional collaboration, and R&D initiatives, and a goal is to create a “Blueprint Review Process” that can be adapted and implemented nationwide for vertiport siting and eVTOL operations, Carswell shared. Click here to apply.

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Nancy Dahlberg
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