Click Here to View This Page on Production Frontend
Click Here to Export Node Content
Click Here to View Printer-Friendly Version (Raw Backend)
Note: front-end display has links to styled print versions.
Content Node ID: 429045
Blade Urban Air Mobility is launching a trial commuter flights into New York City from Westchester County Airport (KHPN) in Whit Plains, New York. The twice-daily weekday services will start on December 1 and use helicopters and are intended to prepare the way for operations later with the four-passenger eVTOL being develop by Blade parent company Joby.
According to Blade CEO Rob Wiesenthal, the move is in response to rising demand for more efficient commuting options. "With the return of five-day work weeks and traffic between the greater New York City suburbs and Manhattan now exceeding pre-pandemic levels, it was time for Blade to service this demand,” he said.
Blade’s website currently offers existing flights in its chartered rotorcraft fleet between Westchester and Blade’s West 30th Street helipad lounge. This is typically served by a five-passenger Bell 407, at a cost of $225 per seat.
However, the new pilot program promises seats priced starting at $125 with the purchase of a commuter pass. Blade has not specified which aircraft will operate the trial service but promises to shorten rush hour commutes “from over an hour and a half to 12 minutes.”
Blade’s existing commuter pass—available for flights from New Jersey and Queens and parts of Long Island—costs $195 per week and entitles holders to then take unlimited flights for just $95 each. The new trial services are specific to flights from Westchester.
Although Blade stresses that its upcoming routes are geared towards business travelers, the program’s preview flights will be available on November 28 (Black Friday). The company said this will offer “a unique holiday shopping experience in the heart of Manhattan.”
Following FAA certification of Joby’s electric air taxi—now anticipated anticipated by the manufacturer in 2026, Blade expects to transition from helicopters to the new aircraft. Speaking in August, following Joby’s acquisition of Blade’s passenger services, Joby founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt pledged that Blade’s customers would be among the first to experience this new mode of transportation.