Blade Appoints Former Carlson Wagonlit Travel Executive as Blade Europe CEO; Expedited Tarmac-Side Security Screening at France’s Nice Int’l Airport for Passengers Launched

NEW YORK, Feb. 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blade Air Mobility, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLDE, "Blade") an asset-light passenger air mobility and medical logistics company, today announced the appointment of Rémi Bouysset as CEO of Blade Europe.​​ Blade Europe passengers can now enjoy helipad-side security clearance at Nice International Airport (“Nice Airport”), enabling helicopter fliers to connect directly to their commercial flights at their departing gates, bypassing the general security screening queues at the airport.

Mr. Bouysset brings to Blade Europe a wealth of experience spanning 30 years in the travel, hospitality, and luxury sectors. The France-born executive led international commercial teams, at both Carlson Wagonlit Travel and Hogg Robinson Group France before its acquisition by American Express in 2015. He then served as head of the Global Partners & Charters division at Ponant, a luxury cruise line, where his work led to the doubling of their fleet and enhancing the guest experience for over four years. Most recently Mr. Bouysset served as the CEO of Blade’s helicopter operating partner in France and Monaco, the Monacair Group.

Melissa Tomkiel, President of Blade Air Mobility, said, “I can’t think of an executive better suited to help to aggressively grow Blade Europe than Rémi. His travel and hospitality experience coupled with his recent role as CEO of our operating partner Monacair will enable him to act quickly and decisively.”

Commenting on Blade Europe’s new ability to streamline its Nice Airport passenger experience, Mr. Bouysset said, “Blade already turns ninety minute drives into seven minute flights between cities in the South of France. The opening of this new security screening facility enables our helicopter passengers flying to the Nice Airport, from departure points including Monaco, Cannes, St. Tropez, Geneva, and Courchevel to save even more time by connecting directly from the helipad landing zone to the departing gates of their commercial flights.”

Mr. Bouysset added, “The addition of the new helipad-side security screening at Nice Airport not only enhances time savings and convenience for our passengers but also allows us to scale our airport transfer services as we transition to quiet, emission-free, electric vertical aircraft.”

Separately, Blade Europe also appointed Benoit Cocheteux, an experienced aviation and logistics executive as Chief Operating Officer, who joins Blade Europe’s management team led by Mr. Bouysset.

About Blade Europe

Blade Europe is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Blade Air Mobility. Through its operating partners Monacair and Héli Sécurité, it is the exclusive provider of year-round, daily, scheduled helicopter transfers between Nice Airport and Monaco Heliport. Seats and charters on this scheduled service can be purchased on the Blade mobile app from €195 each way. Blade Europe is also a leader in the helicopter charter business providing flights throughout the South of France, Monaco, Northern Italy, Switzerland and popular ski destinations in the Alps.

About Blade Air Mobility

Blade Air Mobility provides helicopter and fixed-wing air transportation for passengers, with regional hubs in the Northeast United States, Southern Europe and Western Canada, and for hospitals across the United States, where it is one of the largest air transporters of human organs for transplant. Based in New York City, Blade's asset-light model, coupled with its exclusive passenger terminal infrastructure and proprietary technologies, is designed to facilitate a seamless transition from helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft to Electric Vertical Aircraft (“EVA” or “eVTOL”), enabling lower cost air mobility that is both quiet and emission-free.

For more information, visit www.blade.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include all statements that are not historical facts and may be identified by the use of words such as "will", “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “continue,” “expect,” “estimate,” “may,” “plan,” “outlook,” “future” and “project” and other similar expressions and the negatives of those terms. These statements, which involve risks and uncertainties, relate to analyses and other information that are based on forecasts of future results and estimates of amounts not yet determinable and may also relate to Blade’s future prospects, developments and business strategies. In particular, such forward-looking statements include statements concerning Blade’s future financial and operating performance, results of operations, business and capital deployment strategies and plans, customer behavior, competitive position, industry environment and growth opportunities, and the development and adoption of EVA technology. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs, as well as a number of assumptions concerning future events. Actual results may differ materially from the results predicted, and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance.

Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other important factors, many of which are outside Blade’s control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward-looking statements include: our continued incurrence of significant losses; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and its related effects, failure of the markets for our offerings to grow as expected, or at all; our ability to effectively market and sell air transportation as a substitute for conventional methods of transportation; the inability or unavailability to use or take advantage of the shift, or lack thereof, to EVA technology; our ability to successfully enter new markets and launch new routes and services; any adverse publicity stemming from accidents involving small aircraft, helicopters or charter flights and, in particular, any accidents involving our third-party operators; the effects of competition; harm to our reputation and brand; our ability to provide high-quality customer support; our ability to maintain a high daily aircraft usage rate; changes in consumer preferences, discretionary spending and other economic conditions; impact of natural disasters, outbreaks and pandemics, economic, social, weather, growth constraints, and regulatory conditions or other circumstances on metropolitan areas and airports where we have geographic concentration; the effects of climate change, including potential increased impacts of severe weather and regulatory activity; the availability of aircraft fuel; our ability to address system failures, defects, errors, or vulnerabilities in our website, applications, backend systems or other technology systems or those of third-party technology providers; interruptions or security breaches of our information technology systems; our placements within mobile applications; our ability to protect our intellectual property rights; our use of open source software; our ability to expand and maintain our infrastructure network; our ability to access additional funding; the increase of costs and risks associated with international expansion; our ability to identify, complete and successfully integrate future acquisitions; our ability to manage our growth; increases in insurance costs or reductions in insurance coverage; the loss of key members of our management team; our ability to maintain our company culture; our reliance on contractual relationships with certain transplant centers and Organ Procurement Organizations; effects of fluctuating financial results; our reliance on third-party operators; the availability of third-party operators; disruptions to third party operators; increases in insurance costs or reductions in insurance coverage for our third-party aircraft operators; the possibility that our third-party aircraft operators may illegally, improperly or otherwise inappropriately operate our branded aircraft; our reliance on third-party web service providers; changes in our regulatory environment; regulatory obstacles in local governments; the expansion of domestic and foreign privacy and security laws; the expansion of environmental regulations; our ability to remediate any material weaknesses or maintain internal controls over financial reporting; our ability to maintain effective internal controls and disclosure controls; changes in the fair value of our warrants; and other factors beyond our control. Additional factors can be found in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, each as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. New risks and uncertainties arise from time to time, and it is impossible for us to predict these events or how they may affect us. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance upon any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made, and Blade undertakes no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, changes in expectations, future events or otherwise.

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