Joby Aviation, a leading developer of electric aircraft, said on Monday that it planned to buy the passenger business of Blade Air Mobility, which provides a helicopter taxi service, for $125 million.
The deal would give Joby access to Blade’s infrastructure, routes and customers as it works to obtain regulatory approval for its battery-powered aircraft. Blade’s short-distance routes in New York and southern Europe are well suited to that aircraft, which is designed to carry a pilot and four passengers up to 100 miles before needing to recharge. In addition to the helicopter taxi service, Blade offers chartered jet service, which is included in the sale, and organ transportation, which is not.
The deal signals that plans to begin the use of electric planes, also referred to as air taxis, are getting closer to reality after more than a decade of development. In recent years, Joby and other air taxi companies have raised hundreds of millions of dollars, established partnerships with airlines and carmakers, tested aircraft with the military, and established manufacturing plants.
In an interview, Joby’s founder and chief executive, JoeBen Bevirt, said he expected the company to begin a crucial phase of flight tests for Federal Aviation Administration certification in early 2026. The company also expects to carry its first passengers next year, and buying Blade will help prepare Joby for that moment, he said.
“Blade has spent 10 years building a whole bunch of best-in-class infrastructure, really working to hone the customer experience,” Mr. Bevirt said. “We see that as a launchpad for helping us to accelerate the scale-out of our passenger service.”
Joby’s aircraft look like a cross between a helicopter and a small plane with fixed wings. The aircraft is outfitted with six propellers, which help it to take off and land vertically. Once in the air, the propellers tilt forward allowing the aircraft to fly like a plane.
The deal is expected to close in the coming weeks. The division of Blade that provides organ transportation will remain a stand-alone business, and Joby will become a preferred partner of that company. The organ business, which will take the name Strata Critical Medical, accounted for more than half of Blade’s revenue last year and will continue to be traded publicly.
Blade and Joby listed their shares on the stock exchange in 2021, and Joby said it would pay Blade in either stock or cash. Joby is based in Santa Cruz, Calif., and Blade is based in New York.
Joby is one of several companies racing to commercialize electric aircraft. Others include Beta Technologies in Burlington, Vt., and Archer Aviation in San Jose, Calif.
For many years air taxis have seemed to be just over the horizon but not quite ready. Some companies working on them have gone out of business, been acquired or sought bankruptcy protection.
Part of the reason for the technology’s long gestation is that certifying new parts and aircraft is painstaking and can take many years. President Trump signed an executive order in June aimed at accelerating testing of air taxis, a move that renewed industry optimism that the first air taxis could be certified as early as next year, though some experts believe certification could take longer.
In the meantime, air taxi companies have teamed up with the Defense Department, which does not need to wait for F.A.A. certification to use new aircraft. On Friday, Joby said it would work with the defense contractor L3Harris Technologies to explore making a hybrid military aircraft that can be flown with or without a pilot. Flight testing is expected to start this fall, with operational demonstrations expected next year, the companies said.
For Blade, a sale jibes with its strategy. The company has not invested a lot in helicopters — Blade owns about 15 percent of the aircraft it uses — giving it flexibility to shift to electric aircraft in the future. The company flew more than 50,000 passengers last year out of a dozen locations, including Kennedy International Airport, Newark Liberty International Airport and Manhattan.
Blade reported nearly $250 million in revenue last year, nearly 60 percent from its organ transportation business, according to a securities filing. Most of its remaining revenue came from short-distance passenger transportation.
Neither Blade nor Joby is profitable, but Blade said in an investor presentation in March that helicopter flights from a Manhattan location to J.F.K. broke even with just two passengers. The company said at the time that it expected it would see even lower costs with electric aircraft, which need less maintenance.
In addition to customers and infrastructure, Joby will get the opportunity to test software that was partly developed by a team it acquired from Uber years ago. The software includes an app for customers, and tools used by pilots and in operations.
Niraj Chokshi is a Times reporter who writes about aviation, rail and other transportation industries.
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