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Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

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Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#101

Post by rpmcb »

Alex3917 wrote: post #92
ovb wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And before US Helicopter, there was http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Airways New York Airways had one notable accident: http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/05/16/may-16-1977-hel...

The NYC helicopters in general have a terrible track record. There are constantly articles about them crashing into the rivers, into buildings, into other helicopters or planes, etc. Someone else in the thread posted an article about how the overall helicopter fatality rate compares with the car fatality rate, and while it's hard to say for certain, it doesn't look promising.

I'd be interested in sources for these claims. Lots of hyperbole in this comment.

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#102

Post by yahelc »

crazygringo wrote: post #83

> from Manhattan to JFK and Newark Liberty Airports cut the travel time from 2-hours to 6 minutes for about the same price as many black cars A helicopter flight is cool, sure... ...but "2 hours" is complete nonsense. Even if traffic is terrible, you can always take LIRR+AirTrain from Penn Station to JFK for less than $15, and it's basically guaranteed to take 35 min or less, straight to your desired terminal. Heck,…

35 minutes is a stretch. Starting at Penn Station, Google Maps has 52m as the minimum and 1h11m as the max.

And that's from Penn Station. Add the time it takes to get to Penn Station from where you're going, it can easily be between 1h30m and 2h. I did this trip yesterday, and from where I started in Soho until the airport, it was 1h45m.

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#105

Post by ghaff »

yuliyp wrote: post #79
ghaff wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

OT but I've never really understood the Heathrow Express economics--and I've asked Londoners and they've never been able to give a good explanation either. I take the Piccadilly line in and I've never understood the justification for taking the Express. Maybe if I were staying right around Paddington but not if I'm going to have to take the tube or a taxi anyway.

The exchange rate from your money to Other People's Money is very significant

I'm sure that's true. Though even when I'm spending Other People's Money I tend to avoid gratuitously burning it when I legitimately don't care. As I was discussing with someone this past week, I'm probably something of an exception--or at least have somewhat different priorities about things I care about.

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#106

Post by ryguytilidie »

azinman2 wrote: post #53
Animats wrote: post #7

Footnote on ad: "Promotion rate flights are for first time flyers only and limted to a single use. Other terms and conditions may apply." HeliNY, for which they are a reseller, charges $925 for that trip as a charter. Aircraft capacity is 5 (maybe 6). So the regular price, assuming they make you wait for a full helicopter, is probably about $200.

Lame. Now it really is for the 1%. At $99 I can imagine a family wanting to take one to reduce stress and complexities. How long until drones can take us? :)

I feel like complaining that you can't take your kids on a helicopter ride to "reduce stress and complexities" kind of puts you exactly in that 1%...

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#107

Post by Alex3917 »

rpmcb wrote: post #101
Alex3917 wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The NYC helicopters in general have a terrible track record. There are constantly articles about them crashing into the rivers, into buildings, into other helicopters or planes, etc. Someone else in the thread posted an article about how the overall helicopter fatality rate compares with the car fatality rate, and while it's hard to say for certain, it doesn't look promising.

I'd be interested in sources for these claims. Lots of hyperbole in this comment.

7 crashes between 1995 - 2011, and that's only into the same two rivers.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/helicopter-crash-timelin...

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#108

Post by avree »

crazygringo wrote: post #83

> from Manhattan to JFK and Newark Liberty Airports cut the travel time from 2-hours to 6 minutes for about the same price as many black cars A helicopter flight is cool, sure... ...but "2 hours" is complete nonsense. Even if traffic is terrible, you can always take LIRR+AirTrain from Penn Station to JFK for less than $15, and it's basically guaranteed to take 35 min or less, straight to your desired terminal. Heck,…

35 minutes or less? I've never managed to make the trek in less than an hour, regardless of what means of transit I employ.

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#109

Post by mapt »

cobblestone wrote: post #94
mikeash wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems like blatant false advertising to have "$99" in big text and nothing but an asterisk to indicate that this is a rate you're allowed to have exactly once ever.

Apps don't even exist. Right now they're just collecting email addresses, gaining buzz, and I highly doubt they have any capacity to actually fulfill any of it.

Somebody should validate their privacy policy. A list of active email addresses of people who desire this product could be extremely lucrative for other purposes.

Re: Gotham Air: Manhattan to JFK in 6 minutes for $99

#110

Post by neurotech1 »

mikeash wrote: post #91
dogma1138 wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It actually does, the problem is that the same restrictions do not apply. A very large amount of private aircraft related accidents happen because of extreme conditions in which a commercial airliner would have not been flying under in any case. Privately owned aircraft also tend to be much less well maintained and their pilots have considerably fewer flight hours than big or small commercial aircraft. This is when "…

First of all, you can't just mention a bunch of ways in which smaller aircraft are unsafe and then declare that they somehow don't count. If pilot experience and currency is a big factor for why small planes are more dangerous (and it most certainly is), then it's just a factor for why small planes are more dangerous, not some way that small planes aren't more dangerous. For this specific service, there are a couple…

If these helicopters are FAR Part 135 they'd likely have TCAS. Glass cockpit helicopters flown by commercial pilots are quite likely safer than driving.

Also, a skilled pilot can autorotate a Bell 407 without damage or injury. In fact, it would be easier than ditching a A320.

A friend of mine had a near mid-air in a Bell 407 over a city, flying between buildings, due to the other helicopter operating on an IFR clearance below authorized IFR altitude, shortly after takeoff. Luckily, this particular Bell 407 had EVS(Enhanced Vision System) FLIR (Forward Looking InfraRed) and they were able to descend hard and passed under "IFR" helicopter. The FAA busted the other pilot for failing to set their transponder correctly, and failing to maintain proper lookout, among other things.

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