The UAE will soon get its first hospital-based vertiport, from which air taxis will take off and land, ensuring patients are provided with healthcare services within minutes.

The announcement was made on Wednesday, October 8, by Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, in partnership with Archer Aviation Inc., which revealed that Archer will convert its existing helipad to accommodate both traditional helicopter and eVTOL aircraft operations.

The vertiport will help passengers commute from the hospital to nearby locations in just minutes, dramatically slashing travel times compared to traditional ground transportation. These journeys will cover both non-emergency passenger use cases and time-critical organ transport.

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Archer's electric aircraft, Midnight , will be used during these flights, which is designed to carry up to four passengers while producing less noise and emissions than a traditional helicopter. The planned passenger-carrying cabin configuration will be used for both purposes.

It will be the first company in the UAE to launch flying taxi operations.

The location expands Archer's planned network following the recent approval of the hybrid vertiport at Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal. Archer's Chief Growth and Infrastructure Officer, Bryan Bernhard, described this venture as "connecting not just places, but pillars of life in Abu Dhabi".

“Following our first hybrid vertiport approval at the Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal earlier this year, this next location demonstrates how Archer and the GCAA are working together to unlock a city-wide ecosystem for advanced air mobility," he said.

Back in June, Abu Dhabi conducted its first successful test flight , during which an (eVTOL) aircraft took off and landed on the helipad of Abu Dhabi Cruise Terminal, and cruised above the Abu Dhabi Marina.

The flying taxi tested was EHang's EH216‐S, which has been touted as the world's first certified, pilotless, two-seater eVTOL aircraft.

The EH216-S features eight arms equipped with 16 propellers. Each propeller is powered by a dual-motor system, totalling 32 independent electric motors.

According to an earlier Khaleej Times report, flying taxis by Archer are expected to be deployed by the end of this year.

To support the launch of flying taxi operations in the UAE, Archer said its personnel are collaborating with Abu Dhabi Aviation (ADA) to fly Midnight in the UAE in the coming months and aim for a passenger flight in Abu Dhabi later this year.

The two will also collaborate across pilot training, flight operations , and community engagement.

Midnight is a piloted, four-passenger aircraft designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time between flights. It reduces 60-90-minute commutes by car to just 10-30 minutes between different emirates of the country.

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