Archer Aviation NYSE:ACHR, the electric air taxi developer, rose 21.96% intraday after unveiling a jointly developed autonomous aircraft platform with defense technology firm Anduril at the Farnborough Airshow. Anduril showed the defense variant, called Thunder, a Group 5 autonomous attack rotorcraft built to work alongside current and future crewed attack and assault aircraft. Archer said it will name its first commercial partners for the platform later this week.
The aircraft is a clean-sheet design. A series hybrid-electric powertrain gives it range and endurance, while dual tiltrotors vary rotor speed to hold efficiency across flight regimes, cutting fuel burn in cruise and reducing acoustic signature during low-altitude approach. The tiltrotor setup allows vertical takeoff with efficient wingborne cruise, so it can operate from rough sites without a runway.
CEO Adam Goldstein said the companies "took a bold first principles approach" rather than modifying an existing airframe. The team has already flown full-scale surrogate aircraft in multiple tests. Thunder's first flight is planned for 2027.