Halo is the commercial variant of Archer’s jointly developed dual-use platform, launching with Japan’s Marubeni Aerospace as first strategic partner.
Archer Aviation (NYSE: ACHR) unveiled Halo, the commercial variant of a jointly developed dual-use platform built with Anduril Industries to serve both defense and commercial markets. The Archer Halo autonomous VTOL was announced July 22, 2026, at the Farnborough International Airshow, one day after Anduril revealed Thunder, the defense variant. The two aircraft share the same airframe, hybrid powertrain and core systems, with configurable payload depending on mission requirements.
Archer Halo autonomous VTOL platform
The platform builds on eight years of eVTOL development and flight testing by Archer, which the company originally advanced through its Midnight passenger eVTOL program. Halo uses a clean-sheet design combining a series hybrid-electric powertrain with dual optimum-speed tiltrotors. The hybrid powertrain is engineered to deliver long range and endurance across the full flight envelope, according to Archer, while the tiltrotors vary rotor RPM to hold efficiency in cruise and reduce noise for suburban and noise-sensitive operations.
The tiltrotor configuration, powertrain and rotor technology give the platform range for global self-deployment. The aircraft can also be packed into a standard shipping container for transport by air, road, rail or sea. Archer said the platform is designed for low-cost, high-volume production using commercial supply chains, building on the manufacturing base developed with Stellantis in Covington, Georgia.
Halo brings together capabilities not combined in any existing unmanned aircraft, according to the company: long range and high speed, heavy modular payload, series hybrid-electric propulsion, full autonomy and vertical takeoff and landing.
Adam Goldstein on the platform
“Over the past eight years we’ve engineered, tested and scaled the technology this platform is built on. The powertrain, the batteries, the motors, the manufacturing. We partnered with Anduril to take all of that knowledge and build something new: a clean-sheet aircraft in a completely different class of range, speed and payload. I believe this is the most sophisticated vertical lift aircraft platform ever developed—it’s exactly what our customers need,” said Adam Goldstein, founder and chief executive of Archer.
Commercial mission set
Halo is targeted at commercial logistics segments that move heavy payloads long distances at low cost, including offshore energy resupply to oil, gas and wind platforms; heavy, time-sensitive freight between hubs and distribution points; humanitarian and medical cargo including wildfire logistics and hospital deliveries; and maritime missions. The commercial rollout follows Archer’s recent push into eVTOL Integration Pilot Program applications with U.S. cities and its earlier work on dual-use expansion with Anduril.
Archer named Marubeni Aerospace Corporation as strategic launch partner for Halo, with additional partners expected later in 2026. Marubeni Aerospace is the aerospace arm of Marubeni Corporation, one of Japan’s largest general trading companies, and represents major international aircraft and helicopter manufacturers. The partnership will focus on joint market research, use case identification and future introduction of Halo.
“Currently, even in cargo transport operations that do not require onboard crew, flights are conducted with human pilots, absorbing the cost, scheduling constraints and human exposure that come with it,” said Satoru Nakagawa, president and chief executive of Marubeni Aerospace Corporation. “Halo’s unmanned, autonomous flight capabilities can address these challenges, and combined with its excellent range, payload capacity and VTOL capability, make it a highly suitable solution that we are pleased to introduce and support for our customers as a first strategic partner.”
More information is available at Archer Aviation.
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