LONDON – BLADE India has inked a purchase order for up to 200 of Eve’s eVTOL, which is an initial underwriting of 50,000 hours of flight time per annum. India is set to witness intra-city helicopter flights, which sets to ‘revolutionise’ urban mobility in the region.
On 27 September, the agreement was made between FlyBlade India – which is a joint venture between Hunt Ventures and US based Blade Air Mobility – and Eve Air Mobility.
On that day, the three companies all announced a strategic partnership which involves the non-binding purchase of up to 200 Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, which includes Eve’s Urban Air Traffic Management (UATM) system.
The consortium plans to collaborate on a three-month-long project which will seamlessly join passengers using helicopters.
India is indeed a very unique and special market for aviation companies. India is vast, with huge economic potential and population growth. Along with that criterion, it comes with many accessibilities and mobility concerns, regulations and of course traffic congestion.
As blades are one of the first movers, in providing short-haul, urban air mobility flights in India, BLADE India will assist Eve with the country’s market behaviour and travel patterns which makes BLADE India a viable partner for Eve to create a suitable Urban Air Mobility (UAM) action plan and environment in India.
Moreover, BLADE will also collect data from its customers and will use those findings to further Eve’s eVTOL development in India, to ensure the best service and support solutions available in India should the project materialises, along with its UATM software. BLADE India, moreover will go to 50,000 hours of flight time per annum utilising Eve’s eVTOL in India.
Management statements
Amit Dutta, managing director, BLADE India stated: “India’s traffic congestion woes are only expected to get worse. This partnership allows us to leverage Eve’s deep expertise in not just EVA design but also in the infrastructure required to support UAM,.
André Stein, co-CEO of Eve said: “We are thrilled about partnering with BLADE India and pioneering the urban air mobility market in the country, which has the potential to be one of the largest markets globally.”
“This initial order will allow us to enter into service in India and further develop the ecosystem according to the community’s needs. We look forward to offering the people of India a zero-emission UAM solution in the future that will be quiet, efficient, and accessible.”
The aggressive growth of electric and sustainable aviation through eVTOL machines is expected to drastically revolutionise the air travel industry, as this may disrupt normal helicopter operations and also significantly shave off carbon footprint emissions, noise politicians and importantly cost of flying.
Moreover, this will also make flying in India more affordable and accessible, contributing to rural growth and economic development as a whole.
The emergence of electric aviation with eVTOL vehicles is expected to significantly reduce the carbon footprint, noise and cost of flying, making it more accessible to the masses.
BLADE India began its operations in 2019 and offers an affordable means of air transportation between major urban hubs in India. Eve Air Mobility is a Brazilian subsidiary of Embraer which produces electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and urban air mobility infrastructure.
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