Archer Aviation acquires Los Angeles airport as home to new air taxi hub and AI test facility

eVTOL air taxi developer Archer Aviation announced the acquisition of an existing airport facility in Los Angeles. The site, located a few miles from LAX airport, will become home to Archer’s future air taxi hub as well as a test bed for AI flight technologies.

Archer Aviation is a California-based developer of eVTOL and eCTOL, having recently begun piloted flights en route to commercial air taxi rides in the future. The plans for its network of sustainable aircraft have expanded to cities like New York and Chicago, as well as other countries like Japan and the United Arab Emirates.

In California, south of its headquarters, Archer intends to take to the skies above Los Angeles with a proposed air taxi network announced in August 2024. Building upon that network, Archer shared earlier this year that it had become the exclusive air taxi provider of the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Through this partnership, Archer’s flagship Midnight eVTOL is expected to transport Olympic VIPs, fans, and company stakeholders around the 2028 games’ locations, utilizing vertiport hubs at key venues. The eVTOL developer said its sustainable aerial technology will also support emergency services and security.

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Today, Archer announced it has allocated the Los Angeles airport hub from which this pending air taxi network will operate, located in Hawthorne, just a few miles from LAX.

Archer finds home ahead of 2028 Los Angeles Games

According to a release from Archer Aviation, the company has signed definitive agreements to acquire control of Hawthorne Airport in exchange for $126 million in cash.

The municipal airport, located on Crenshaw Boulevard, is situated less than three miles east of LAX and near some of the city’s major destinations, including stadiums that will host Olympic events in 2028. According to the company, this existing airport facility will serve as its operational hub for the previously mentioned Los Angeles air taxi network, as well as a test bed for “AI-powered aviation technologies.”

Archer plans to develop and deploy those technologies in Los Angeles alongside its existing aviation partners, like United Airlines. United Airlines’ chief financial officer, Michael Leskinen, spoke about Archer’s progress in AI aviation beyond air taxi networks:

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 also about leveraging cutting-edge technology to better enable moving people safely and efficiently in our most congested airspaces. Through United’s investment arm, United Airlines Ventures, we’re investing in companies like Archer that pioneer technologies that will define and support aviation infrastructure for decades to come.

Before Archer announced its purchase of the Hawthorne Airport, the company also published its operating and financial results for Q3 2025, along with a shareholder letter discussing those results.