InterGlobe plans to launch electric air taxi service in India in 2026

InterGlobe Enterprises on Thursday said it along with Archer Aviation plans to launch an all-electric air taxi service across India in 2026.

Once launched, the InterGlobe-Archer flight will aim to take passengers from Connaught Place in the national capital to Gurugram in Haryana in approximately 7 minutes whereas by road, the 27-kilometre-long trip will take 60-90 minutes, according to a release.

Both companies have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the goal of partnering to launch and operate an all-electric air taxi service in India, subject to appropriate regulatory approvals and clearances.

InterGlobe Enterprises is an Indian travel conglomerate and the country's largest airline IndiGo is part of it. Archer Aviation is a leading player in electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.

The two companies plan to launch an all-electric air taxi service across the country in 2026.

"In addition to urban air taxi services, the parties plan to pursue a variety of other use cases for the electric aircraft in India, including cargo, logistics, medical and emergency services, as well as private company and charter services," the release said.

They intend to work with select in-country business partners to operate Archer's aircraft, finance and build vertiport infrastructure, and train pilots and other personnel needed for these operations.

As per the release, the partnership also plans to finance the purchase of up to 200 of Archer's Midnight aircraft for the India operations.

The Midnight aircraft is a piloted four-passenger eVTOL designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time between flights.

"The goal is for a passenger on an InterGlobe-Archer flight to be able to fly the 27-km Delhi trip from Connaught Place to Gurugram, typically taking 60 to 90 minutes by car, in approximately 7 minutes," the release said.

InterGlobe's Group managing director Rahul Bhatia and Archer's Chief Commercial Officer Nikhil Goel signed the MoU.

"Over the last two decades, InterGlobe has been involved in providing safe, efficient, and affordable transportation to hundreds of millions of Indians across the country.

"We are excited at this new opportunity of bringing an effective, futuristic and sustainable transport solution by introducing Archer's electric aircraft to India," Bhatia said.

Goel said India is one of, if not the largest opportunity for eVTOL aircraft utilisation in the world as the country is home to the world's largest population of over 1.4 billion people and its largest cities face some of the greatest congestion challenges in the world.

Apart from aviation, InterGlobe Enterprises is also into hospitality, logistics, airline management, travel commerce, advanced pilot training, and aircraft maintenance engineering.