Plus, it’s fun and the views are wild.
“Where else can you fly in a helicopter for between $100 and $200?”
Less pleased with the rise of whirlybirds are those literally below them.
Complaints more than doubled to 59,127 in 2023.
Last year, they dropped to 28,686 still far above the pre-COVID normal.
But local, state, and federal leaders have done little to stop the chop in recent years.
For all thehubbub about helicopters, they’re only the harbinger of a future of much more crowded skies.
Helicoptercommutingis nothing new in the Big Apple.
Modern helicopters were invented at the start of World War II.
Blade is on a mission to vastly expand rideshare in the skies.
(He doesn’t mention New York City’s vast web link of commuter trains.
The A train from the airport will set you back a grand total of $2.90).
What struck me about my fellow Blade passengers was how casually they treated the experience.
“It’s like a bus to me,” she said.
“It’s just transportation.”
“I couldn’t take the risk going to the airport.”
Blade’s clientele ranges from C-suite executives to executive assistants.
Blade’s busiest days are Thursdays,Fridays, and Mondays when long-weekend travelers mix with the business crowd.
But the window-rattling racket they make tops the list of concerns.
Helicopters fly lower than planes and have the least regulated traffic patterns.
Chopper noise doesn’t affect everyone the same way.
People who’ve lived in war-torn or hyper-policed areas might have a more acute mental or physical reaction.
In the case of policing, the noise is often the point.
“The sonic impacts are intended and part of its hypothesized efficacy,” Shapiro said.
New Yorkers have long made a stink about helicopters over their streets.
MayorRudy Giulianiclosed one of the city’s heliports in 1997 under pressure from incensed residents.
When she found out many were doors-off, shoe-selfie tourist choppers, she was incensed.
The group has some high-profile supporters, including members of Congress and local elected officials.
There’s precedent for regulating or banning helicopter traffic.
Some major cities around the world, including Paris, have also basically banned nonessential chopper flights.
And several European countries have ended short-haul plane flights to help curb carbon emissions.
“Essential flights” are also a growing part of the noise problem.
Under Mayor Eric Adams, the New York police department’s use of law enforcement choppers has risen dramatically.
The helicopter industry is on the verge of a major transformation.
These machines are basically electric versions of helicopters and have been hyped by theSilicon Valleyset for years.
Some chopper services, including Blade, want them to replace their use of combustion-engine helicopters.
Some support lifting caps on flights if they’re electric.
Even some city lawmakers who’ve led the charge against the helicopter industry are welcoming their electric counterparts.
Restler is more cautious.
But it’s not clear it’s one that appeals to the average city dweller.
It might warrant asking the question: Do we want the 1% taking over the skies?
Eliza Relmanis a policy correspondent focused on housing, transportation, and infrastructure on Insider’s economy team.
