An air taxi company hoping to transform travel in time for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles is poised to purchase a local airport.
Archer Aviation, based in San Jose, signed agreements to buy the Hawthorne Municipal Airport in a $126 million all-cash deal, L.A. Business First reported.
The airport at 12101 Crenshaw Boulevard is on an 80-acre property with 190,000 square feet of airport, office and hangar space. It was previously owned by the City of Hawthorne, which has used it as an aviation reliever airport. The price amounts to $663 per square foot.
Archer plans to base operations for a planned air taxi network in Los Angeles at the airport.
The company specializing in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicles was selected as the official air taxi partner of the LA28 Olympic Games.
Archer is also the exclusive air taxi partner for the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission, which supports Los Angeles as a host city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and Super Bowl LXI, slated to take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood in 2027.
Besides running its operations out of the Hawthorne Airport, Archer plans to use the facility as an “innovation testbed” for its artificial intelligence-powered aviation technologies, including AI-powered air traffic and ground operations management.
At the same time as it acquired the Hawthorne Municipal Airport, Archer announced that it raised $650 million in additional equity capital. The company’s total liquidity is now more than $2 billion.
To successfully operate a region-wide air taxi program, especially with a high-traffic event like the Olympics or World Cup, several takeoff and landing sites will need to be established for Archer’s operations.
Last month, Cushman & Wakefield was tapped by Atlantic Aviation subsidiary VertiPorts by Atlantic to secure leases for “vertiports,” or landing pads for eVTOL vehicles. Archer plans to offer 10- to 20-minute flights between SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles International Airport and various locations from Santa Monica to Orange County.
— Chris Malone Méndez
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