Blade Air Mobility has released its financial results for the fourth quarter and calendar year ended 31 December, 2022.

"We are pleased to deliver strong fourth quarter results to close out a monumental year for Blade," says CEO Rob Wiesenthal. "Strong organic growth in MediMobility Organ Transport coupled with our acquisitions in Europe and Canada drove record revenue and flight profit in calendar year 2022. As we navigate a dynamic macro environment, we continue to believe that Blade is well positioned to thrive in any economic climate, particularly given the non-discretionary nature of our medical business, the resilience of our fliers and the supply flexibility afforded by our asset-light model."

"This was another year of consistent execution on our growth plan, adding significant scale across our passenger and medical businesses, while corporate expenses as a percentage of revenue continue to shrink," adds CFO Will Heyburn. "We remain confident that our path to profitability is both tangible and forthcoming. As a result, we expect a significant majority of our existing cash balance to be available for acquisitions that should expand our air mobility capabilities and accelerate Blade's trajectory to positive free cash flow."

"This quarter we completed the first piloted test flight of an electric vertical aircraft (EVA) in the greater New York City region in cooperation with our partner Beta Technologies," says president Melissa Tomkiel. "We were pleased to be a part of this historic moment for the industry, bringing us one step closer to making electric vertical aircraft technology a reality for the people of New York and beyond. In the meantime, we remain focused on providing best-in-class air mobility services for our fliers around the world using conventional aircraft, always improving the experience, terminal infrastructure and technology that will fortify our transition to EVA once certified for use, while continuing to scale our businesses to ensure consistent profitability and cash flow."

Fourth quarter financial highlights include;

- Total revenue increased 55 per cent to $38.1 million in the current quarter versus $24.6 million in the prior year period. On a pro forma basis, assuming Blade had owned Blade Canada and Blade Europe in the comparable prior year period, revenue for the fourth quarter ended 31 December, 2022 would have increased approximately 34 per cent on a constant currency basis.

- Flight profit increased 38 per cent to $5.4 million in the current quarter versus $3.9 million in the prior year period, driven by strong growth in its MediMobility Organ Transport business and the contribution from the Blade Canada and Blade Europe acquisitions.

- Flight margins declined to 14.3 per cent in the current quarter, as expected, from 16.0 per cent in the prior year period, driven by lower margins in Jet and Other, and outsized growth in MediMobility Organ Transport, which outpaced that of Blade's other business lines and tends to have lower flight margins versus its historical company average, and the continued ramp of Blade Airport.

- Short distance revenue increased 51 per cent to $9.4 million in the current quarter versus $6.3 million in the prior year period. Growth was driven by Blade's acquisitions of Blade Europe and Blade Canada, and continued growth in the Blade Airport service.

- MediMobility Organ Transport revenue increased 120 per cent to $21.6 million in the current quarter versus $9.8 million in the prior year period, driven by the addition of new transplant centre customers, continued growth with existing customers and strong market demand. Revenue increased seven per cent sequentially in Q4 2022 versus Q3 2022.

- Jet and Other revenue decreased (17) per cent to $7.1 million in the current quarter versus $8.5 million in the prior year period primarily due to a normalisation in jet charter volume, as the prior year period benefited from outsized demand due to the COVID Omicron variant, partially offset by higher average price per charter trip.

- Net loss of $15.4 million in the quarter declined versus a net income of $0.8 million in the prior year period.

- Adjusted EBITDA decreased to $(8.0) million in the current quarter from $(5.9) million in the prior year period, but improved as a percentage of revenues to (20.9) per cent in the current quarter from (24.1) per cent in the prior year period. The increased loss versus the prior year period is primarily attributable to additional corporate and recurring expenses related to Blade's recent growth and expected future growth, the contribution from Blade Europe, which generated limited revenue and flight profit during the seasonally low quarter, partially offset by increased flight profit.

Business highlights and recent updates include;

- Blade Airport, offering service between Manhattan and both John F Kennedy International airport and Newark Liberty International airport in New York, has continued to show sequential improvements, with the fourth quarter setting a record for total revenues and seats flown.

- On 18 January, 2023 RedBird Capital Partners increased its ownership in Blade to more than five per cent and partner Andrew Lauck became a board observer.

- On 14 February, 2023 Blade announced the completion of a historic test flight of Beta Technologies' Alia-250 EVA at the Westchester County airport in White Plains, New York. The flight marks the first test of a piloted EVA in the greater New York City area and is a significant milestone in the companies' continued partnership to bring safe, quiet and sustainable air transportation to commuter and commercial customers.