At the Farnborough International Airshow 2026, one of the biggest innovations in air transport was presented: electric air taxis. The British company Vertical Aerospace conducted the first public flight of the Valo model, an electric aircraft with vertical takeoff and landing. The Valo runs entirely on electricity, thanks to eight large battery packs and eight propellers, four of which are movable. According to test pilot Tim Eldridge, the 1.2 megawatts of power during takeoff makes the aircraft extremely powerful, while the transition from vertical to horizontal flight remains the biggest technical challenge.
“It’s all electric. So, there are eight very large batteries. Imagine eight big Teslas in the bottom of this car. Batteries that power eight propellers, four in the front, which can tilt, four in the back that just provide lift. So if we’re going to go into a vertical takeoff, all eight of those propellers are going to lift up, giving you lift up. And as we accelerate, the four front propellers are going to tilt forward, giving you more and more speed.”
Valo aims to achieve a flight range of up to 160 kilometers, relying on the latest advances in battery technology, electric motors and lightweight materials. “You really feel the power when you take off. 1.2 MW (megawatts) of electrical power at takeoff. That’s a lot of power and you can feel it coming through the structure of the aircraft.” The American company “Archer Aviation” also introduced its electric air taxi “Midnight”, designed to transport passengers over short distances. Archer aims to use this service during the “2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games”, creating a network that will connect the international airport with the main centers of the city. According to the company, the goal is to make the price of a flight competitive with the cost of a car trip.
“What we’re competing with is someone who might go rent a car to get around or do a 10, 15 mile trip for, let’s say, $100. We want to be able to give them a seat in a taxi like this to where they’re going,” said Tom Muniz, Archer’s director of information technology.
Meanwhile, Joby Aviation has begun demonstration flights in the United States and is nearing the final stages of certification. Although the companies are pursuing different technological approaches, they all face the same challenge: securing regulatory approvals and proving that electric air taxis can be safe, reliable and affordable enough to become a widely used means of transportation.