Gotham Air is Uber for helicopters
Pills, pets, hot stone massages – there's an Uber for all of them. But now the "hail something from your smartphone" model has gone considerably more upmarket, after the launch of Gotham Air – an Uber for helicopters.
Admittedly hailing a helicopter comes with more conditions than hailing a cab. Firstly, at the moment it's only in New York. Secondly, the helicopter will only ferry passengers from Manhattan's Downtown Heliport to either JFK or Newark airports. Thirdly, it operates a flat fee of $219 (£150) per journey. And fourthly, the chopper will only take off once it has a minimum of four passengers.
But the app, which launched yesterday, cuts passengers' journey to the airports down to a time-efficient six minutes. It's certified by the US Federal Aviation Authority, and the chopper has full-sized windows, giving passengers a full view of the Big Apple as they zip over its rooftops.
Its founders say they might expand to other places (ie. London) – but only if it's popular enough in Manhattan. Hmm…