Archer Aviation and Formula 1 announced a formal multi-year partnership on 12 November, with the aim of bringing eVTOL air taxi services to selected grands prix around the world, according to Aerospace Global News and Flying Magazine.
The agreement joins one of the world's most commercially powerful sports properties with a manufacturer that is still working towards certification of its aircraft. For Archer, the exposure is considerable: as Adam Goldstein, founder and CEO of Archer Aviation, put it, "With 830 million fans worldwide, Formula 1 gives us a global audience of prospective passengers who are as obsessed with high-performance vehicles as we are."
What the Partnership Actually Covers
The core of the deal is exploratory. Both parties plan to study the feasibility of eVTOL air taxi operations at Formula 1 venues, including identifying dedicated vertiport locations at circuits, according to both outlets. Proposed services would carry VIPs, spectators and event stakeholders using Archer's Midnight aircraft.
Air taxi services could also be bundled into hospitality and ticket packages, both outlets report. That framing positions Midnight not merely as a transport option but as a premium event experience, which suits the Formula 1 brand well.
Flying Magazine reports that Archer has been named an Official Supporter of Formula 1 as part of the arrangement.
Archer Aviation's Midnight Aircraft
The Midnight is a five-seat aircraft: four passengers plus a pilot, designed for short urban journeys. It uses 12 propellers and can take off and land vertically, requiring no runway, according to Aerospace Global News and Flying Magazine. Its maximum range is around 100 miles (160 km) and its top speed is around 150 mph (240 km/h), the outlets report.
A Midnight prototype was already on public display at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas in October, giving the partnership a visible launch point before the formal announcement, according to both outlets.
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Where Archer Plans to Operate
The initial focus markets are the United States, the Middle East, Asia and Europe, Aerospace Global News reports. Both Miami and Texas, which host Formula 1 races, are being explored as potential air taxi network locations, Aerospace Global News also reports.
Flying Magazine reports that Archer is separately planning a vertiport in downtown Los Angeles, which would sit alongside any Formula 1-linked infrastructure in California.
Archer also plans further aircraft appearances at the Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix, Aerospace Global News reports. Both events attract high volumes of international visitors, making them natural showcases for a premium short-hop air service.
The Regulatory Hurdle
None of this can move forward without infrastructure and regulatory approval from aviation authorities, both outlets make clear. Commercial passenger operations depend entirely on Midnight receiving certification, which Flying Magazine reports Archer is targeting by 2027.
That timeline means the partnership is, for now, a framework for planning rather than an imminent service. The events appearances and vertiport studies are groundwork. Whether certified operations at Formula 1 venues follow will depend on how the certification process unfolds over the next two to three years.
Emily Prazer, Chief Commercial Officer of Formula 1, framed the deal in terms of shared values: "Innovation is at the heart of Formula 1, and Archer shares our passion for pushing boundaries and exploring what is possible."
The Bottom Line
Archer Aviation is using Formula 1's global platform to build awareness of Midnight among exactly the audience most likely to pay for a premium urban air taxi: affluent, event-driven and already comfortable with high-performance technology. The commercial logic is clear.
What matters for our readers is the gap between ambition and operation. The deal is real, the aircraft exists in prototype form, and the target markets are well chosen. However, vertiport infrastructure does not yet exist at any of the circuits mentioned, and regulatory approval in multiple jurisdictions remains outstanding. The 2027 certification target, as Flying Magazine notes, is the critical date to watch.
This kind of infrastructure-first thinking at major events echoes broader questions about how premium travel experiences are being reimagined. Our analysis of how Dubai built Emirates into a successful airline is relevant context: network ambition and commercial partnerships alone do not build an airline or an air taxi service. Execution, certification and infrastructure do.
This article draws on reporting by Aerospace Global News and Flying Magazine.
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