Embraer's Eve Urban Mobility Solutions is to provide up to 60,000 flight hours in its planned four-passenger eVTOL aircraft for the Blade Air Mobility transportation network. According to an agreement announced today, starting in 2026 Eve will provide up to 60 of its all-electric aircraft through a network of local operators to serve Blade customers in South Florida and the U.S. West Coast.
Eve, which refers to the new model generically as the Electrical Vertical Aircraft, started simulated trials last July in an engineering simulator and then in October 2020 achieved an initial flight with a proof-of-concept unit. With its Embraer sister company Atech, it has also been working on urban air traffic management technology, partly through a collaboration with the UK Civil Aviation Authority.
The agreement with Blade still has to be finalized. Following the New York-based group's standard asset-light business model, Blade will pay for the flight time logged on the eVTOL aircraft, with guarantees to operators for minimum utilization rates.
“Blade is aligned with our mission as they have created a platform that provides the user seamless access to urban air mobility, and now with Eve to provide an experience that is quiet and without emissions,” said Eve president and CEO Andre Stein. “This partnership with Blade is the next step in unlocking the future of mobility in these key areas."
Last month, Blade announced a similar agreement with rival eVTOL aircraft developer Wisk, which is to supply and operate up to 30 of its planned new air taxi model. Wisk, which is a joint venture between Boeing and Kitty Hawk, has not yet published specifications for the new "sixth-generation" design but has indicated it will be larger than the two-seat, fully-autonomous Cora model that it is flight testing in California and New Zealand.
In April, Beta Technologies agreed to supply up to 20 of its four-passenger Alia 250 eVTOL vehicles to Blade's partner operators. Beta aims to complete certification of the aircraft in 2024 and has begun flight testing a full-scale prototype.
Blade currently provides flights through a mix of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. It recently reached an agreement with MagniX to convert the Cessna Caravan aircraft operated by its partner Lima to electric propulsion.
The business is based on "third-party financing relationships" that keep aircraft assets off its balance sheet. The company is in the process of a merger with special purpose acquisition company Experience Investment that is expected to raise around $400 million.
"Blade is pleased to partner with Eve, leveraging Embraer's deep aerospace expertise to provide Blade with quiet, zero-carbon, electric aircraft," commented company CEO Rob Wiesenthal. "Eve's aircraft provides ideal operating economics for Blade's shorter distance routes, adding to our other recently announced partnerships, which, together, can optimize service for Blade's wide variety of mission profiles and regional hubs.
Meanwhile, the Eve management team is negotiating a possible merger with special purpose acquisition company Zanite Acquisition. This is backed by Kenn Ricci, who also owns the Directional Aviation group, whose OneSky Flight division recently agreed to buy up to 200 of the Brazilian manufacturer's eVTOL aircraft to be operated by its new urban air mobility operation, Halo. It has also received a commitment for another 50 aircraft from Brazilian helicopter operator Helisul Aviation.
