SAN JOSE — An Israeli aviation company has sued San Jose-based Archer Aviation in federal court, claiming the air-taxi maker’s flagship aircraft copy a patented flight-control system built to keep a vertical-takeoff aircraft flyable when its electronics fail.
Urban Aeronautics Ltd. filed the patent-infringement complaint June 19 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. It names Archer’s two electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft — the Midnight and the earlier Maker — as the infringing products.
Key takeaways
- Urban Aeronautics, an Israeli firm, sued Archer Aviation on June 19 in San Jose federal court for patent infringement.
- The suit targets Archer’s Midnight and Maker eVTOL air taxis.
- At issue is U.S. Patent No. 7,946,528, a 2011 patent covering a redundant flight-control system for safe emergency landings.
- Urban Aeronautics says it warned Archer in June 2025 and offered a license; it now alleges willful infringement and seeks enhanced damages and attorney fees.
- The case flips the usual script — Archer is normally the company filing eVTOL patent suits, not defending them.
What the lawsuit claims
The patent at the center of the case, U.S. Patent No. 7,946,528, was issued in 2011 and covers a redundant flight-control setup. If any one control subsystem “catastrophically fails,” the patent says, the remaining systems keep enough command of the aircraft to bring it down in a controlled landing. Urban Aeronautics calls that capability vital to the safety of vertical-takeoff aircraft and says it developed the design while building its own flying-car prototypes.
The complaint says Urban Aeronautics put Archer on notice nearly a year ago, in a June 27, 2025 letter that included claim charts spelling out the alleged infringement and offered Archer a license. Archer kept building and selling its aircraft, the suit says, which is the basis for its claim of willful infringement. Urban Aeronautics asks the court for a reasonable royalty, enhanced damages, and a finding that the case is “exceptional” — a designation that would let it recover attorney fees. It has demanded a jury trial.
Who is behind the suit
Urban Aeronautics Ltd. is based in Yavne, Israel, and was founded in 2000 by Rafi Yoeli, a former Israeli Air Force reserve pilot who worked at Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing. Yoeli designed the X-Hawk and CityHawk flying-car prototypes and, through a subsidiary, the autonomous Cormorant. The company says it has worked on vertical-takeoff aircraft for urban transportation for more than a decade. It is represented by Benjamin Deming of the firm DNL Zito.
Why it matters for the air-taxi race
Archer, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange and is headquartered at 190 W. Tasman Drive in San Jose, is one of the front-runners in the race to put electric air taxis into commercial service. It is also usually the one on offense in the industry’s patent fights — Archer is suing rival Vertical Aerospace and has a long litigation history with its Bay Area competitor, Joby Aviation. This time, a foreign rival is coming at Archer.
Archer had not filed a response to the complaint as of Friday.
Frequently asked questions
What is an eVTOL?
An eVTOL is an electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing aircraft — a battery-powered craft that lifts off like a helicopter and cruises like a small plane. Companies are racing to use them as short-hop urban air taxis.
What is Archer Aviation?
Archer is a San Jose company developing the Midnight air taxi. It is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker ACHR.
What does Urban Aeronautics want?
It is asking the court to find that Archer infringed its patent and to award a reasonable royalty, enhanced damages for what it calls willful infringement, and attorney fees. It has demanded a jury trial.
Has Archer responded?
Archer had not filed a response to the lawsuit as of Friday.