Monterey Bay DART Project Analyst Jordan King visited Salinas Municipal Airport last week as BETA Technologies’ Alia CX300 touched down on its way to eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP) activities.

Salinas Municipal Airport already has BETA chargers and a thermal management system installed on site, allowing the CX300 to plug in, power up, and continue on its route toward eIPP operations.

Salinas Municipal Airport is also the site where Archer conducts primary flight testing for its Midnight aircraft. During the visit, Archer rolled out Midnight for a photoshoot alongside BETA’s chargers, bringing both aircraft together on the same field.

BETA and Archer are founding members of America’s Consortium for Electric Skyways (ACES), launched this year with Macquarie Capital. ACES is an ambitious plan to build interoperable electric aircraft charging infrastructure at more than 250 airports and vertiports across the country by 2030, with priority markets including California, Texas, Florida, and New York. The consortium’s charging hardware runs on the Combined Charging Standard (CCS), an open standard endorsed by the General Aviation Manufacturer’s Association, allowing multiple aircraft manufacturers to share the same charging network. The initiative prioritizes deployment in markets where eIPP operations are expected to launch first.

BETA team members Joseph Block and Erin Sheelen spoke on charging infrastructure and airport readiness at the 2026 LIFT Summit. The infrastructure already in place at Salinas Municipal Airport brings those themes to life on the ground.

Salinas Municipal Airport’s existing charging infrastructure, its role as Archer’s flight test site, and its position within the ACES network make it a standout example of the Central Coast’s growing role in Advanced Air Mobility development.