Takeoff clearance is checked. This is the Blackfly. It's an all-electric personal flying vehicle that doesn't require any sort of certification to operate. I'm not a pilot. I've never flown anything in my life, but I'm about to try it out. Welcome to

Pivotal, a Silicon Valley-based startup whose mission statement is to open the world to the possibilities of flight with its single-seat eVTOL, or electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles. You may have seen other eVTOLs from companies like Joby and Archer, but while they're aiming to put

electric air taxis in the sky, Pivotal is targeting the recreational market with its $190,000 aircraft. The Blackfly is Pivotal's fourth-generation pre-production aircraft made from an all-carbon fiber composite. It's powered by eight electric motors with four propellers on each wing. Anyone who buys

one is required to complete a comprehensive training program, and that's what I'm here to do. My first order of business is to learn how to fly the Blackfly in Pivotal's simulator. Whoa! Go over the course of three days, my flight instructor teaches me how to take off,

make approaches and land. This is actually pretty surreal. You like it so far? Yeah, I'm also trained to handle multiple emergency situations like motor failures and GPS loss, and I have to pass an evaluation that shows I can safely operate the aircraft before moving on to

the real thing. So I've just spent three days in the simulator. Now we're out on an airfield east of San Francisco, and today is the day. Today's the day I'm going to be flying the Blackfly. But first, I want to show you

how there's two identical joysticks now these are identical and they're redundant to select the joystick that I want to use during the flight I usually select the left joystick because I'm left-handed if anything goes wrong during the flight with that joystick I

can immediately switch over to the right joystick on top of the joystick is the rocker if I want to climb higher I push the rocker forward and if I want to descend I pull it towards me there's also a touchscreen which is how I start

the motors and it provides all the real-time data you'd expect like altitude direction battery levels and engine temperatures and yes there's a ballistic parachute for the aircraft for worst case scenarios I practiced deploying it back during a simulator training and though it's been tested

extensively Pivot tells me in more than 7,000 flights no pilot has needed to deploy the parachute okay I've spent 3 days now in the simulator so tell me how flying the real thing is going to feel different my first impression when I

flew it was I was shocked how responsive it was it responds almost like immediately almost probably before you think the airplane's going to turn I mean I'm a fixed-wing pilot so as a fixed-wing pilot I'm used to constantly putting in inputs

to maintain my altitude or air speed with this aircraft it does all the work for you for your first flight today it's going to be a hover flight up to 40 ft and then once you're at 40 ft you're going to twist the joystick to the right

and you're going to yaw 45° to the right. How are your stress levels today? It's good stress, nervous stress. It's a little nervous stress. All right, time for my first [Music] flight. Let's do this. All clear, selecting desired

joystick [Music] elevon movement is free and correct. You are clear for takeoff [Music] Wow, that felt a lot like the simulator but everything was just a lot more extreme. Uh, you could just really feel the rush of the engines, um the takeoff was was a lot

harder than the simulator, um but that was pretty wild to look out and see that I was actually 50 ft above the ground. That was nuts. The Black Fly can reach speeds up to 63 knots and fly about 20 minutes before needing

a recharge because it's considered an ultra light aircraft. There's no certification required but you can't fly over populated areas. You need a wide open space. Last year, Pivotal began delivering Black Flies to customers. CEO Ken Carlin says the response has been

unbelievable enthusiasm. They get to experience that freedom to, you know, travel three-dimensionally over, you know, beautiful landscapes, and it's a it's an experience a lot of them actually have trouble putting to words. For those among them who were accomplished pilots and

you know, understand this is a different kind of aircraft, one that they can fly out of their backyard. They don't have to go to the airfield to do it. They're also having a great time with it as well. Back at the airfield, my flight's got

increasingly more complex. On my second flight, I stayed over the pad again, this time moving on a rectangle pattern before landing. But on my third flight, I finally got to spread my wings. I flew a pattern I'd practiced dozens of times on the simulator that

finishes with a direct approach to the pad, overshot the pad just a [Music] little. Oh my God, okay, I'm sold. If I had a few hundred thousand spare dollars lying around and a few hundred acres of property, I could see owning a

Pivotal aircraft. But it wouldn't be the Blackfly. Pivotal is now only taking orders for its production model, the Helix. Though it looks similar to the Blackfly on the surface, Pivotal says the hardware has been completely redesigned. We've changed every single printed

circuit board on the aircraft, both from a robustness perspective, from a current parts selection perspective, and from a manufacturability perspective. The company won't say how many orders it's taken for the Helix, but it does plan to begin deliveries in Q2

of 2025. My last flight of the day was going to be the most challenging yet. I'd be flying a longer circuit that finishes with a 90° turn right before landing. I'd practice this on the simulator, but by late in the day, winds were picking up

and I'd have a solid crosswind coming across as I made my approach. Area takeoff path is clear. Takeoff clearance checked. [Music] [Music] [Music] That was so much fun. Good job. I had a good teacher. Wow, what an incredible day I

Can't believe that just really happened. I want to thank everyone at Pivotal who helped make today happen, in particular my incredible flight instructors, Sabrina and John. But I want to know what you guys think. Would you guys go up in one of these? Let me know in the comments below and I'll see you in the future.

I Learned To Fly an eVTOL in 3 Days With Pivotal

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The Blackfly is an all-electric personal flying vehicle requiring no certification.

Pivotal, a Silicon Valley startup, aims to open flight possibilities with its single-seat eVTOL.

The Blackfly is Pivotal's fourth-generation aircraft, made of carbon fiber and powered by eight electric motors.

A comprehensive training program is required before operating the Blackfly.

The Blackfly has two identical joysticks, a rocker for altitude control, and a touchscreen for real-time data.

The aircraft includes a ballistic parachute, tested extensively in over 7,000 flights.

The author's first impression was the responsiveness of the aircraft.

The author notes the difference in control between the Blackfly and fixed-wing aircraft.

The first flight involved hovering at 40 ft and then yawing 45° to the right.

The real flight felt more extreme than the simulator, with a harder takeoff.

The Blackfly reaches speeds up to 63 knots and has a flight time of about 20 minutes.

Pivotal began delivering Blackflies to customers last year, with enthusiastic responses.

The author's subsequent flights increased in complexity.

The author expresses interest in owning a Pivotal aircraft but notes that the Blackfly is no longer in production.

Pivotal is now taking orders for the Helix, a redesigned production model.

Deliveries for the Helix are planned to begin in Q2 of 2025.

The final flight involved a longer circuit with a 90° turn before landing, challenging due to increased winds.

The author expresses their overall positive experience and thanks the Pivotal team.