> why it makes no sense for them to pay extra to get to the airport slightly faster

“Slightly” faster from where they live is like an hour.

> They're not doing last-minute spontaneous trips or trying to cram a city break into a weekend

I’ve taken Blades quite a few times. This describes zero of their clients. It’s folks who want to fly out of EWR without having to deal with New Jersey’s infrastructure, those splurging and a very small number of regulars.

> This is absolutely not a product that fits into a $50k or $80k lifestyle

Agree. But it can and does on occasion. That makes it categorically different from purely plutocratic services. Also, use $80k if that works better for the example. That’s half of New Yorkers and a commanding majority of Manhattan residents.

Helicopters and eVTOLs are relatively accessible in a city as rich as New York.