NEW DELHI: Without worrying about peak traffic hours or regular congestions, wealthy individuals will soon be able to fly between central Delhi and Gurugram, a distance of 27 km, in just 7 minutes as InterGlobe Enterprises (IGE), the promoters of India’s largest airline IndiGo, and California-based Archer Aviation Inc have joined forces to bring the air taxi services by 2026.
The partnership has plans to finance the purchase of up to 200 of Archer’s electric take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft – Midnight- for the Indian market. They intend to launch the service starting from New Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai. While the parties didn’t disclose the cost of availing this service, it is likely to be on the expensive side.
Backed by Chrysler-parent Stellantis, Boeing and United Airlines, Archer’s Midnight aircraft is a piloted, four-passenger eVTOL aircraft designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time between flights.
The goal is for a passenger on an InterGlobe-Archer flight to be able to fly the 27-km Delhi trip from Connaught Place to Gurugram, typically taking 60 to 90 minutes by car, in approximately 7 minutes. The parties intend to work with select in-country business partners to operate Archer’s aircraft, finance and build vertiport infrastructure, and train pilots and other personnel needed for these operations.
In addition to urban air taxi services, they plan to pursue services such as cargo, logistics, medical and emergency, as well as private company and charter services. Rahul Bhatia, Group Managing Director of InterGlobe, said, “We are excited at this new opportunity of bringing an effective, futuristic and sustainable transport solution by introducing Archer’s electric aircraft to India.”