Archer Aviation’s partner Soracle, a joint venture between Japan Airlines and Sumitomo Corporation, has been named to lead the establishment of air taxi services in the Osaka Prefecture. Soracle intends to deploy Archer’s Midnight aircraft as the core part of its fleet, connecting Osaka and the broader Kansai region, Archer said today (September 29).
Archer and Soracle previously announced a strategic alliance in November 2024 to jointly launch air taxi operations in Japan, with the goal of offering services in cities where existing ground transportation is constrained by traffic or geographic barriers. Archer and Soracle recently displayed Archer’s Midnight aircraft at the Osaka Kansai World Expo to showcase its planned future air taxi service in the Kansai region.
A delegation from Japan, including Hiromasa Nakano, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism; the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau; and the Consul General of Japan in San Francisco visited Archer’s headquarters last week for a briefing with Archer’s leadership, to discuss how the parties can realise air taxi services across the country.
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