New York City headquartered Blade Inc., a ride-sharing app for helicopters, will launch in India’s financial capital Mumbai, its first city outside the United States.
Working with local partners Hunch Ventures based in New Delhi, Blade India will start the service in March 2019, and claims passengers will be able to swap traffic-strewn eight-hour drives into trips as short as 35 minutes.
Blade will have hubs in Mumbai’s oceanfront neighborhood Juhu and in Mahalaxmi, home to the city’s famous horseracing track. It plans to offer flights between the two heliports, as well as to Pune, the closest major city, and Shirdi, a popular religious site about 150 miles away.
“The growth that you’re experiencing here in India is stratospheric,” Blade CEO Rob Wiesenthal said, citing the country’s strong economy as one of the main reasons for launching in Mumbai.
Last updated: December 26th, 2025
