Blade Urban Air Mobility, which recently announced a business combination with special purpose acquisition company Experience Investment Corp as part of its plan to be publicly listed, has announced the relaunch of its New York Airport service starting 1 June, providing air connectivity between Manhattan and John F. Kennedy airport. Initially launched in 2019, the shared helicopter flight service is believed to be the largest UAM initiative in the United States.

In the first phase of the relaunch, flights will operate during peak rush hour times between Blade terminals at convenient Manhattan heliport locations and JFK, with ground transportation included between the JFK helipad and all commercial terminals for $195 per seat or $95 per seat with the purchase of an annual Airport Pass. Blade intends to also relaunch service to include continuous daily availability and flights to Newark Liberty International airport and LaGuardia airport by autumn 2021.

“Given the significant increase in ground congestion in New York City and the strong desire to return to travel we are seeing among our fliers, we are confident that this is the right time to relaunch our flights between Manhattan and JFK,” says Blade CEO Rob Wiesenthal. “Moreover, we look forward to continuing our growth in urban air mobility as we work towards the transition from conventional rotorcraft to quiet and emission-free electric vertical aircraft (EVA) in close cooperation with our flight operating partners and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.”

Starting in June Kayak, the travel search engine, will offer Blade's airport service to Kayak users who purchase flights departing from or arriving at JFK. Kayak will also purchase seats directly from Blade to help distinguish its various loyalty and promotional initiatives and to add value to Kayak users.

“Search interest for summer travel continues to increase week over week,” reveals Kayak CEO Steve Hafner. “As travel demand continues, our partnership with Blade gives Kayak users the opportunity to make their trip to and from the airport as seamless as possible.”