Air taxi start-up Vertical Aerospace Group said late Thursday it intends to go public with nearly $400 million in new funding from a number of big-name partners who have also agreed to order up to 1,000 aircraft. Vertical has a deal to merge with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Broadstone Acquisition (NYSE: BSN). The deal values the combination at about $2.2 billion and includes investments from American Airlines Group (NASDAQ: AAL), air-leasing company Avolon, and Virgin Atlantic airline, as well as an investment arm of Microsoft. Image source: Getty Images. Vertical Aerospace's main product is the VA-X4, a piloted, zero-emissions electric-vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle. The airplane/helicopter hybrid is expected to have a range of 100 miles and capacity to carry four passengers along with a pilot at speeds up to 200 miles per hour. These so-called air taxi developers are becoming a hot commodity on Wall Street. China's Ehang Holdings is already public. Another start-up, Joby Aviation, has a deal pending to merge with SPAC Reinvent Technology Partners. And Embraer is reportedly in talks to merge its eVTOL unit with Zanite Acquisition, also a SPAC. Vertical has a competitive advantage in the form of its investors. American, Virgin Atlantic, and Avolon together have committed to buy up to 1,000 aircraft. American, which said it has a "pre-order" of 250 aircraft with an option to order an additional 100, in a statement said eVTOLs could be a key part of its push to go green. "Emerging technologies are critical in the race to reduce carbon emissions and we are excited to partner with Vertical to develop the next generation of electric aircraft," American Chief Financial Officer Derek Kerr said. "For years, American has led the industry in investing in newer, more fuel-efficient aircraft. Today's partnership is another example of that commitment, and an investment in the future of air mobility." While small eVTOLs can't replace commercial aircraft, they could provide greener alternatives to funnel a small number of passengers to large hub airports. 10 stocks we like better than Broadstone Acquisition Corp.When investing geniuses David and Tom Gardner have a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the newsletter they have run for over a decade, Motley Fool Stock Advisor, has tripled the market.* David and Tom just revealed what they believe are the ten best stocks for investors to buy right now... and Broadstone Acquisition Corp. wasn't one of them! That's right -- they think these 10 stocks are even better buys. See the 10 stocks *Stock Advisor returns as of June 7, 2021 Teresa Kersten, an employee of LinkedIn, a Microsoft subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Lou Whiteman owns shares of Microsoft. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.Source