Electric air taxi developer Joby Aviation on 29 August completed its planned acquisition of Blade Air Mobility’s passenger division, which consists of a brokerage and marketing business and leased terminal space at several airports and heliports.
Joby paid $76 million in stock for the business, which posted a thin profit in 2024 and a loss in 2023, according to securities filings.
The divestiture left Blade with only its medical transport business, a solidly profitable operation. As such, Blade on 29 August changed its name to Strata Critical Medical.
“The acquisition provides Blade’s established network of terminals and loyal flyers in key markets like New York and in Southern Europe, positioning Joby for a faster entry into commercial service” of its in-development electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, Joby says.
The acquired business does not operate aircraft but rather “acts as an air charter broker”, selling seats on aircraft operated by other companies, including through a smartphone app. The business also operates leased terminals at airports and heliports in New York, Newark, Monte Carlo and the French cities of Cannes and Nice, securities filings show.
Joby on 4 August disclosed its intention to acquire the business, at the time saying it would pay $80 million, plus up to $45 million in additional subsequent payments based on conditions including those related to financial performance and employee retention, its financial filings show.
Joby actually paid $76 million in stock to close the deal and still may owe another $45 million, filings show.
It describes the acquisition as providing it with infrastructure and customers to support its eventual operation of electric air taxis. The company is working through the challenging and expensive process of developing and certificating a four-passenger eVTOL powered by six electric motors.
Like competing air taxi developers, Joby’s ability to bring a wholly new class of aircraft through the Federal Aviation Administration’s demanding certification process is uncertain.
The eVTOL industry has expressed optimism, especially after the US government and four other nations in June released a document it called a “roadmap” toward certificating air taxis. That broad, bullet-pointed document describes the need for an improved regulatory framework and calls for a “crawl, walk, run” certification approach.
“By combining Joby’s aircraft with Blade’s established network, we’re creating an unmatched foundation for bringing quiet air travel to market,” Joby chief executive JoeBen Bevirt says of the acquisition. “Blade’s loyal flyers will be among the first to experience this new mode of transportation, and over time we look forward to making it even easier to access, integrated seamlessly into the apps and services people already use every day.”
The business acquired by Joby sells seats on flights of up to about 100 miles and relies extensively on helicopters, with all the aircraft being operated by partner companies.
The operation turned a $3.6 million profit in 2024, with $102 million in revenue. It lost $5 million in 2023.
In its 2024 financial report, Blade described the passenger business as “designed to facilitate a seamless transition from helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft to electric vertical aircraft”.
The filing also described challenges and uncertainties associated with eVTOLs. Blade said the success of its passenger business ”will depend to a substantial extent” on regulatory approval and availability of eVTOLs, and passenger acceptance, neither of which are certain.
