Archer Aviation reported passing another milestone in its efforts to develop electric takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for use in aerial services like air taxis, with the receipt of a $10 million pre-payment from United Airlines as part of its 2021 transaction for 100 urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles.

The $10 million deposit by United represents a very small portion of the estimated $1 billion value of its February 2021 UAM accord with Archer, under which it agreed to buy 100 production-grade eVTOL aircraft. Still, given the quasi-universal conditional hedging common in deals involving aircraft still under development – many of which are memoranda of understanding or other formats with potential exits built in – the pre-payment offers an indication United intends to see their transaction through. 

The United advance payment also provides a non-negligible infusion of cash for Archer’s drive to usher its Maker eVTOL prototype through…

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Source: dronedj.com