Archer Aviation’s Q2 2025: Midnight Manufacturing Takes Off, Olympic Gold in Sight

SANTA CLARA, CA – August 11, 2025 – If there’s one thing Archer Aviation is proving this quarter, it’s that talk of electrifying the skies is evolving into action—with actual aircraft rolling off the line.

Midnight Manufacturing: From Concept to Assembly Line

Archer’s manufacturing ramp is no longer just an idea. In Q2 2025, the company confirmed six Midnight aircraft are now in production, with three already in final assembly across its dual facilities:

• Archer Aviation’s “golden manufacturing line” at Archer’s 68,300-square foot “Integrated Test Lab and Manufacturing Facilities” in San Jose, California.
• The “high-Volume Manufacturing” 400,000 square foot eVTOL aircraft manufacturing facility in Covington, Georgia known as “Arc”.

At the same time, the FAA has begun conducting reviews and inspections in support of Archer’s long-awaited production certificate.

“Integrated Test Lab and Manufacturing Facilities“

Archer’s 68,300-square foot “Integrated Test Lab and Manufacturing Facilities” in San Jose, California.

15,000 battery packs per year are planned to be produced at Archer’s “Integrated Test Lab and Manufacturing Facilities” in San Jose, CA.

Archer was approved by CAEATFA for a sales and use tax exclusion with an estimated savings for Archer of ~$10M over the next few years

“AUTOMOTIVE STYLE” BATTERY PACK LINE

PRECISION ELECTRIC ENGINE MANUFACTURING LINE

“ARC“

The construction of “ARC“, the roughly 400,000 square foot eVTOL aircraft manufacturing facility located on an 100 acre property in Covington, Georgia was recently completed in December 2024. It began construction in March 2, 2023.

Archer plans to produce around 650 eVTOL aircraft per year by 2030 at the “ARC” plant, but it can be expanded to double the size (800,000 square feet) increasing the manufacturing capability to 2,300 eVTOL aircraft per year.

A Peugeot assembly plant in Europe. Peugeot is one of 14 brands owned by Stellantis that has implemented Palantir’s AI in improving manufacturing efficiency.

Olympics Elevates Urban Air Mobility to a Global Stage

In a headline-worthy coup, Archer has been tapped as the Official Air Taxi Provider for the LA28 Olympic Games. This is more than symbolism—the designation drives synergy between federal mandates and commercial readiness. It comes in tandem with a White House Executive Order issued in June 2025, pushing for a U.S. lead in eVTOL deployment and creating a de facto roadmap for scaled operations as early as next year.

Archer plans for parts of its vertiport network in Los Angeles to become operational as soon as 2026.

Vertiports and Venues

Planned vertiports in the LA area include:

• Los Angeles International Airport
• University of Southern California,
• Orange County,
• Santa Monica
• Hollywood Burbank
• Long Beach
• Van Nuys

Part of the agreement between Archer Aviation and NBCUniversal, will also include access to storytelling during the 2028 Opening and Closing Ceremonies in Los Angeles, as well as other Olympic Games coverage by NBCUniversal in 2026 and 2028.

UAE Launch Edition Takes Flight

Archer is accelerating its international footprint. Following definitive agreements with Abu Dhabi Aviation and the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, the Launch Edition program has now officially begun. This quarter saw the delivery of the first Midnight to the UAE, which is already flying in local trials. Archer expects to receive initial commercial payments later in 2025.

Defense Wing Gaining Altitude

On the military front, Archer Defense made strategic strides by acquiring:

• A patent portfolio and talent from Overair
• Specialized defense composite manufacturing assets from Mission Critical Composites in Southern California

These moves deepen Archer’s ability to serve allied defense programs, accelerating its defense narrative beyond civil air mobility.

Tapping Tiltrotor Talent from Overair

First up: Archer has acquired a patent portfolio and key engineering talent from Overair, the Southern California-based Karem Aircraft spin-off known for its work on high-efficiency tiltrotors. It’s a savvy move that gives Archer access to tech DNA developed for DARPA and the U.S. Army, now redirected toward their evolving defense platform.

Bringing in experts from Overair strengthens Archer’s ability to deliver on its partnership with Anduril—a collaboration focused on developing autonomous, hybrid-powered VTOL aircraft purpose-built for military operations. (see the eVTOL buzz article: Why Archer chose Palantir to integrate AI from the ground up into the sky: click here)

Full Control of Composite Manufacturing

Archer is taking production in-house with the acquisition of Mission Critical Composites’ 60,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Huntington Beach, CA. The facility, along with critical composite tooling and assets, positions Archer to rapidly prototype and iterate defense airframes with increased agility.

This move vertically integrates key fabrication capabilities, reducing reliance on outside vendors and streamlining Archer’s ability to deliver military-grade hardware at speed.

Exterior of state-of-the-art 62,000 sq. ft. Class A manufacturing facility in Huntington Beach, CA
purchased by Archer Aviation from Mission Critical Composites

Cash Position: Solid, but Burn is Real

It’s hard to understate just how well-funded Archer is—for now. The company boasts a sector-leading liquidity pool of approximately $1.7 billion in cash and equivalents.

But the other side of the coin—burn rate—is closing in. Analysts highlight that with sustained operating losses and the lengthy FAA certification ahead, Archer may have under a few years of runway unless costs are tamed or more capital injected.

More Info:

Archer Aviation Q2 2025 Shareholder Letter: click here

Archer Announces Second Quarter Results, Highlighting Manufacturing Ramp Of Midnight Aircraft Ahead Of Early Commercial Deployments: click here

Archer Signs Framework Agreement For Multi-Hundred-Million Dollars To Accelerate Commercial Air Taxi Operations Across UAE: click here