“Its a pilot project, we’ll see where it goes—but it’s pretty exciting,” Airbus Chief Executive Tom Enders said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal at the Digital Life Design conference here.
– Imagine being able to use Uber to call a copter instead of a car. Airbus is partnering with Uber to make that dream a reality, the Wall Street Journal reports. Airbus will provide helicopters to Uber for use with its "on-demand services" in what the Airbus CEO calls an "exciting" pilot project and what The Verge calls "Uber for helicopters." The service will launch at the Sundance Film Festival this week in Utah. Uber has actually tested its so-called "UberChopper" service before, such as with rides between Manhattan and the Hamptons or rides to special events like the Cannes Film Festival or the US Formula 1 Grand Prix. Clients will be picked up in a car (also from Uber) and taken to and from the helipad; anyone in the area with the Uber app can call a copter. Past tests were pretty pricey: The Verge reports rides have so far cost a minimum of several hundred bucks, with the Hamptons rides costing $3,000 each. In this case, Uber tells the Los Angeles Times that 15-minute rides to and from Park City, Utah, and the Salt Lake City airport will cost $200 per person during the day and $300 at night. It's not Uber's first foray into alternate forms of transportation; it offers rickshaw service in India and boat service in Turkey.