Helix: Introducing the Air Taxi
Born from Canadian engineer Marcus Leng’s idea of designing a personal electric powered vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle, the Helix is the 4th generation design from Pivotal. The company started as Opener in Palo Alto, California and flew their first proof of concept vehicle on October 5th, 2011. Three years later the company debuted the first version of their BlackFly, a much sleeker and refined version of their proof-of-concept vehicle. Development continued to versions two and three with the first manned flight in a public venue of the production version at EAA AirVenture 2021 in front of over 600,000 spectators.
Could you revolutionize your commute and lifestyle at the same time? The Pivotal Helix says, yes.
In October 2023, Opener rebranded themselves to Pivotal and debuted their first production eVTOL aircraft, the Helix. The Helix is a more advanced design than the third generation BlackFly boasting more performance, greater dependability and is much easier to fly. The single seat Helix accommodates pilots that weigh up to 220 pounds and up to a 6’5” standing height. Simple controls and digital instrumentation provide real-time altitude, location, and speed make operating the Helix a breeze. The battery holds 8 kilowatt-hours on a full charge which provides a range of over 20 miles at a cruise speed of 63 miles per hour or 55 knots. Recharging the battery will put the Helix back in the skies in about 75 minutes on a 240 V charger. Safety features include redundancies in critical components, a ballistic parachute, auto-takeoff, auto-land and a position hold while hovering.
Not a pilot? Not a problem as the Helix can be flown without an FAA Pilot Certificate. The Helix falls under the FAA’s Part 103 Ultralight classification which does not require operators to hold a pilot certificate. Pivotal also provides mandatory flight training at their Customer Center in Palo Alto, California for customers who want to take to the skies in their very own Helix. Customers can choose from three different configurations of the Helix, each with their own features and price points. The base model Helix costs $190,000, while the “Cadillac” version comes with more features and a larger price tag of $260,000.
As road traffic and congestion increase in cities, eVTOLs like the Helix can be used to channel your inner George Jetson and soar above it all with plenty of time for your meeting with a top client. You can even take the Helix on the go as it can be disassembled and stored into a sixteen-foot trailer (included in packages 2 and 3). The aircraft can be re-assembled and back in the sky ready for the next adventure in as little as 30 minutes, according to Pivotal.
Born from Canadian engineer Marcus Leng’s idea of designing a personal electric powered vertical take off and landing (eVTOL) vehicle, the Helix is the 4th generation design from Pivotal. The company started as Opener in Palo Alto, California and flew their first proof of concept vehicle on October 5th, 2011. Three years later the company debuted the first version of their BlackFly, a much sleeker and refined version of their proof-of-concept vehicle. Development continued to versions two and three with the first manned flight in a public venue of the production version at EAA AirVenture 2021 in front of over 600,000 spectators.
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