Korean Air has agreed to buy up to 100 Archer Midnight eVTOL aircraft and launch a government-supported initiative to use the versatile platforms for a wide range of applications. The government involvement seems to set this arrangement apart from the usual airline deal for the new types of aircraft in that the South Korean government has set adoption of new aviation technology as a national priority. The deal will see the 100 Midnights used “across multiple applications and use cases, starting with government applications,” the joint news release says. Just what the government might have in store for the aircraft was not detailed.
The Midnight appears to be embarking on varied missions in South Korea, but it’s not clear from the news release exactly what those missions might be. “This partnership aims to accelerate the introduction of differentiated aircraft capabilities in the near term while laying the foundation for the broad adoption of Archer’s aircraft in Korea across multiple end markets and use cases,” the release says. AvBrief had a close look at the Midnight last week at NBAA-BACE in Las Vegas and here is our video report.
