Archer Aviation Partners with NASA to Advance Air Mobility
Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE: ACHR), a leading innovator in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, announced today a significant partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The collaboration, established under the NASA Space Act Agreement, aims to ensure U.S. leadership in the next generation of air transportation.
The partnership will commence with an initial project focused on studying high-performance battery cells and conducting safety testing for Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and space applications. This project is part of a broader partnership between Archer and NASA, dedicated to achieving the highest levels of battery cell safety and systems.
While the supply chain for electric vehicles in the U.S. is maturing, Archer believes that the supply chain for electric aircraft remains nascent, not just in the U.S., but globally. This testing is expected to drive progress in this area. NASA aims to test Archer’s battery cell and system design and share the results to advance the entire AAM industry. The maturation of battery technology is anticipated to be a crucial factor for the mass production and adoption of electric aviation.
Archer plans to deliver a high-performing battery pack with leading safety levels to its Midnight electric air taxi. These cells are tailor-made for aerospace applications, including eVTOL, electric conventional takeoff and landing (eCTOL) aircraft, and potential usage in space.
Adam Goldstein, Archer’s Founder and CEO, expressed pride in partnering with NASA, stating, “Many countries around the world are challenging the U.S. in this new era of flight and our country is at risk of losing its global leadership position unless we work together, government and industry, to ensure we seize the moment and pioneer this new era of aviation technology, which stands to benefit all Americans.”
As part of the joint efforts around battery characterization, NASA and Archer will focus on further testing the safety, energy, and power performance capabilities of the battery cells. Tests will be performed using the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), one of the most advanced high-speed X-ray facilities in the world, to understand how the cells function during extreme abuse cases.
Archer has chosen these cells to power the proprietary electric powertrain system it has designed and developed, and is beginning to mass manufacture for its production electric air taxi, Midnight. The battery cell form factor chosen by Archer, a cylindrical cell, has a track record of safety, performance, and scalability proven through decades of volume manufacturing, deployed across many applications globally, including in millions of electric vehicles.
Advanced Air Mobility promises to provide substantial public benefits to our communities, including transforming how urban and rural communities live and commute by maximizing mobility, bolstering cargo and logistics options, and creating pathways to manufacturing jobs and other ladders of social and economic opportunity. Designing, developing, and mass-producing batteries and electric motors that are purpose-built for electric aircraft are core to unlocking this potential.
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