Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

v3.22.4
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Revenue Recognition
The Company recognizes revenue under ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. The core principle of the revenue standard is that a company should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The Company only applies the five-step model to contracts when it is probable that the Company will collect the consideration it is entitled to in exchange for the goods and services transferred to the customer. The following five steps are applied to achieve that core principle:
Step 1: Identify the contract with the customer
Step 2: Identify the performance obligations in the contract
Step 3: Determine the transaction price
Step 4: Allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract
Step 5: Recognize revenue when the company satisfies a performance obligation
The Company does not have any significant contracts with customers requiring performance beyond delivery.
Short Distance products are typically purchased using the Blade App and paid for principally via credit card transactions, wire, check, customer credit, and gift cards, with payments principally collected by the Company in advance of the performance of related services. The revenue is recognized as the service is completed.

Jet products are typically purchased through our Flier Relations associates and our app and are paid for principally via checks, wires and credit card. Jet payments are typically collected at the time of booking before the performance of the related service. The revenue is recognized as the service is completed.

MediMobility Organ Transport products are typically purchased through our medical logistics coordinators and are paid for principally via checks and wires. Payments are generally collected after the performance of the related service in accordance with the client's payment terms. The revenue is recognized as the service is completed.

The Company initially records flight sales in its unearned revenue, deferring revenue recognition until the travel occurs. Unearned revenue from customer credit and gift card purchases is recognized as revenue when a flight is flown. Unearned revenue from the Company’s passes is recognized ratably over the term of the pass. For travel that has more than one flight segment, the Company deems each segment as a separate performance obligation and recognizes revenue for each segment as travel occurs. Fees charged in association with add-on services or changes or extensions to non-refundable seats sold are considered part of the Company's passenger performance obligation. As such, those fees are deferred at the time of collection and recognized at the time the travel is provided.
Contract liability is defined as entity’s obligation to transfer goods or services to a customer for which the entity has received consideration (or the amount is due) from the customer. As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company's contract liability balance is $6,709 and $5,976 respectively. This balance consists of unearned revenue, prepaid monthly and annual flight passes, customer credits, and gift card obligations. Unearned revenue represents principally the flight revenues received in advance of the actual flight. Customer credits represents unearned revenue for flight reservations that typically were cancelled for good reason by the customer. The customer has one year to use the credit as payment for a future flight with the Company. Gift cards represent prepayment of flights.
The table below presents a roll forward of the contract liability balance:
For the Years Ended
December 31,
2022
September 30,
2021
October 1, 2021 - December 31, 2021 (Transition Period)
Balance, beginning of period
$ 5,976  $ 3,973  $ 4,654 
Additions 72,742  50,301  18,003 
Revenue recognized
(72,009) (49,620) (16,681)
Balance, end of period
$ 6,709  $ 4,654  $ 5,976 

For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recognized $4,406 of revenue that was included in the contract liability balance as of January 1, 2022. For the year ended September 30, 2021, the Company recognized $2,858 of revenue that was included in the contract liability balance as of October 1, 2020. For the transition period ended December 31, 2021, the Company recognized $1,934 of revenue that was included in the contract liability balance as of October 1, 2021.

Certain governmental taxes are imposed on the Company's flight sales through a tax included in flight prices. The Company collects these taxes and remits them to the appropriate government agency. These taxes are excluded from revenue.
The Company’s quarterly financial data is subject to seasonal fluctuations. Historically, its second and third quarter (ended on June 30 and September 30, respectively) financial results have reflected higher travel demand and were better than the first and fourth quarter financial results.
Blade operates in three key product lines across two segments (see Note 9 for further information on reportable segments):

Passenger segment

Short Distance – Consisting primarily of helicopter and amphibious seaplane flights in the United States, Canada and Europe between 10 and 100 miles in distance. Flights are available for purchase both by-the-seat and on a full aircraft charter basis.
Jet and Other –  Consists principally of revenues from non-medical jet charter, by-the-seat jet flights between New York and South Florida, revenue from brand partners for exposure to Blade fliers and certain ground transportation services.

Medical segment
MediMobility Organ Transport – Consisting of transportation of human organs for transplant and/or the medical teams supporting these services.
Disaggregated revenue by product line and segment was as follows:
For the Years Ended
December 31,
2022
September 30,
2021
October 1, 2021 - December 31, 2021 (Transition Period)
Passenger Segment(1)
Short Distance $ 44,986  $ 22,462  $ 6,255 
Jet and Other 29,355  21,663  8,541 
Total $ 74,341  $ 44,125  $ 14,796 
Medical Segment(1)
MediMobility Organ Transport $ 71,779  $ 6,401  $ 9,822 
Total $ 71,779  $ 6,401  $ 9,822 
Total Revenue $ 146,120  $ 50,526  $ 24,618 
__________
(1) Prior period amounts have been updated to conform to current period presentation.

Cost of Revenue

Cost of revenue consists of flight costs paid to operators of aircraft and cars, landing fees and internal costs incurred in generating ground transportation revenue using the Company's owned cars.
Software Development Costs for Internal Use
Costs incurred for the development of the Company’s internal use software are expensed as incurred. Software development costs consist primarily of staff costs including stock-based compensation.
Selling and Marketing

Selling and marketing expenses consist primarily of advertising costs, staff costs including stock-based compensation, marketing expenses, sales commissions and promotion costs. Advertising costs, which are included in “Selling and marketing expenses”, are expensed as incurred. Advertising costs were $4,540, $1,889 and $1,022 for the years ended December 31, 2022, September 30, 2021, and the transition period ended December 31, 2021.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses principally include staff costs including stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization, directors and officers insurance costs, professional fees, credit card processing fees and establishment costs.
Stock-Based Compensation
The Company accounts for stock-based compensation in accordance with ASC 718, Compensation - Stock Compensation (“ASC 718”). ASC 718 establishes accounting for stock-based awards exchanged for employee and consultant services. Under the provisions of ASC 718, stock-based compensation cost is measured at the grant date, based on the fair value of the award, and is recognized as expense over the employee’s requisite service period (generally the vesting period of the equity grant). The fair value of the Company’s stock options are estimated using the Black Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions: fair value of the Company’s common stock, expected volatility, dividend rate, risk free interest rate, and the expected life. The Company utilized a third party to determine the fair value of the Company’s common stock. The Company calculated the expected volatility using the historical volatility for a pool of peer companies over the most recent period equal to the expected term and evaluated the extent to which available information indicate that future volatility may differ from historical volatility. The expected dividend rate is zero as the Company does not expect to pay or declare any cash dividends on its common stock. The risk-free rates for the expected terms of the stock options are based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of the grant. The Company had not experienced significant exercise activity on stock options. Due to the lack of historical information, the Company determined the expected term of
its stock option awards issued using the simplified method. The simplified method assumes each vesting tranche of the award has a term equal to the midpoint between when the award vests and when the award expires. The Company recognized forfeitures at the time the forfeiture occurs.
Restricted stock awards are granted at the discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors. These awards are restricted as to the transfer of ownership and generally vest over the requisite service period.

Income Taxes

The Company accounts for income taxes using the asset and liability method, which requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the consolidated financial statements or in the Company’s tax returns. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined on the basis of the differences between U.S. GAAP treatment and tax treatment of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to reverse. Changes in deferred tax assets and liabilities are recorded in the provision for income taxes. The Company assesses the likelihood that its deferred tax assets will be recovered from future taxable income and, to the extent it believes, based upon the weight of available evidence, that it is more likely than not that all or a portion of the deferred tax assets will not be realized, a valuation allowance is established through a charge to income tax expense. Potential for recovery of deferred tax assets is evaluated by considering taxable income in carryback years, existing taxable temporary differences, prudent and feasible tax planning strategies and estimated future taxable profits.

Each period, the Company analyzes whether it is more-likely-than-not that tax positions will be sustained upon examination, including resolution of any related appeals or litigation processes, based on the technical merits of the positions. In evaluating whether a tax position has met the more-likely-than-not recognition threshold, the Company presumes that the position will be examined by the appropriate taxing authority that has full knowledge of all relevant information. When differences exist between tax positions taken in a tax return and amounts meeting the more-likely-than-not threshold, the company will record an uncertain tax position, resulting in one or more of the following: an increase in a liability for income taxes payable, a reduction of an income tax refund receivable, a reduction in a deferred tax asset, or an increase in a deferred tax liability. The Company records penalties and interest relating to uncertain tax positions as part of income tax expense. As of December 31, 2022, the company has no unrecognized tax benefits. See Note 10 for additional information.
Cash and Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash
The Company considers all highly liquid investments with a maturity of three months or less on their acquisition date as cash and cash equivalents. Restricted cash consists principally of Company funds on deposit with a financial institution, which supports a letter of credit by the financial institution in favor of the Company’s obligations to the United States Department of Transportation as well as deposits posted for collateral with certain of the Company’s vendors.
Short-Term Investments
Held-to-Maturity Investments
The Company's investments in held-to-maturity securities consist of investment grade U.S. Treasury obligations with maturity dates of less than 365 days. The Company has the ability and intention to hold these securities until maturity. Accordingly, these securities are recorded in the Company's balance sheet at amortized cost and interest is recorded within interest income on the Company's consolidated statement of operations. The held-to-maturity investments balance at December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021 was $130,382 and nil, respectively. The market value of the held-to-maturity investments at December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021 was $130,352 and nil, respectively.

Other Short-Term Investments
Other short-term investments consist of highly-liquid investments available for sale. As of December 31, 2022, other short-term investments consisted of an available-for-sale, traded, debt securities fund, which is recorded at fair value with unrealized gains and losses reported, net of tax, in “Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)”, unless unrealized losses are determined to be unrecoverable. Realized gains and losses on the sale of securities are determined by specific identification. The Company considers all available-for-sale securities as available to support current operational liquidity needs and, therefore, classifies all securities as current assets within short-term investments on the Company’s consolidated
balance sheets. These other short-term investments are excluded from disclosure under “fair value of financial instruments” due to the Net Asset Value practical expedient. The other short-term investments balance at December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021 was $20,358 and $279,374, respectively. The cost of other short-term investments at December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021 was $20,460 and $280,263, respectively.
Accounts Receivable
Accounts receivable consists principally of amounts due from the Company’s MediMobility Organ Transport Customers, which are large hospitals that receive terms for payment and, as a result, are typically found within our Medical segment.. Receivables are reviewed on a regular basis for collectability. Based upon these reviews and historical collection experience, the Company determined that no allowance for uncollectible accounts was required as of December 31, 2022 and 2021.
Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets

Prepaid expenses includes prepaid insurance, the costs of which are amortized on a straight-line basis over the related coverage periods, prepaid marketing supplies and prepayments to aircraft operators, which are expensed based upon usage or flight time.

Property and Equipment, Net

Property and equipment are carried at cost, net of accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is computed utilizing the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the asset. Leasehold improvements depreciation is computed over the shorter of the lease term or estimated useful life of the asset. Additions and improvements are capitalized, while repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred.

Useful Life
(in years)
As of December 31,
2022

2021
Furniture and fixtures
5 $ 407  $ 520 
Technology equipment
3 330  351 
Leasehold improvements Shorter of useful life or life of lease 2,799  2,512 
Vehicles 5 735  239 
Total property and equipment, gross 4,271  3,622 
Less: Accumulated depreciation and amortization (2,234) (1,577)
Total property and equipment, net $ 2,037  $ 2,045 

For the years ended December 31, 2022, September 30, 2021, and the transition period ended December 31, 2021, the Company recorded depreciation and amortization expense for property and equipment of $830, $353 and $137, respectively.

Acquisitions

The Company accounts for acquisitions of entities or asset groups that qualify as businesses in accordance with ASC 805, Business Combinations (“ASC 805”). The purchase price of the acquisition is allocated to the tangible and intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their estimated fair values at the acquisition date. The excess of the purchase price over those fair values is recorded as goodwill. During the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, the Company may record adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed with the corresponding offset to goodwill. Upon the conclusion of the measurement period or final determination of the values of assets acquired or liabilities assumed, whichever comes first, any subsequent adjustments are recorded in the consolidated statements of operations. See Note 4 for additional information.

Joint Venture
Blade has recorded its investment in the joint venture at cost less impairment (if any). Blade’s joint venture investment does not qualify for accounting under the equity method because the Company does not have sufficient control or influence. The Company accounted for it at cost less impairment (if any) and not at fair value due to the following: ASC
321, Investments - Equity Securities, paragraph ASC 321-10-35-2 states, in part, that an entity may measure an equity security without a readily determinable fair value that does not qualify for the practical expedient to estimate fair value in accordance with ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements (“ASC 820”) paragraph 820-10-35-59 at its cost minus impairment, if any. See Note 5 for additional information.

Intangibles Assets, Net

The Company has finite-lived and indefinite-lived intangible assets, including goodwill. Finite-lived intangible assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives. Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are not amortized but are reviewed for impairment on an annual basis, or more frequently if events or circumstances indicate that the asset may be impaired. Research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Following initial recognition of the finite-lived intangible asset, the asset is carried at cost less any accumulated amortization. Amortization of the asset begins when the asset is available for use. Amortization is recorded in “General and administrative expenses” on the Company’s consolidated statement of operations. See Note 6 for additional information.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

Long-lived assets, except for goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets, consist of property and equipment and finite-lived acquired intangible assets, such as exclusive rights to air transportation services, customer lists and trademarks. Long-lived assets, except for goodwill and indefinite intangible assets, are tested for recoverability whenever events or changes in business circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be fully recoverable. Impairment expense is recognized to the extent an asset’s expected undiscounted future cash flows are less than the asset’s carrying amount. There were no impairment charges during the years ended December 31, 2022, September 30, 2021, and the transition period ended December 31, 2021. As of December 31, 2022, the Company determined that long-lived assets were not impaired.

Goodwill

In testing goodwill for impairment, the Company has the option to begin with a qualitative assessment, commonly referred to as “Step 0,” to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit containing goodwill is less than its carrying value. This qualitative assessment may include, but is not limited to, reviewing factors such as macroeconomic conditions, industry and market considerations, cost factors, entity-specific financial performance and other events, such as changes in the Company’s management, strategy and primary customer base. If the Company determines that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, the Company performs a quantitative goodwill impairment analysis by comparing the carrying amount to the fair value of the reporting unit. If the carrying amount exceeds the fair value, goodwill will be written down to the fair value and recorded as impairment expense in the consolidated statements of operations. The Company performs its impairment testing annually and when circumstances change that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying value. The Company performed its annual impairment assessment of goodwill as of December 31, 2022 and concluded that goodwill was not impaired.

Leases

We determine if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Leases are recorded on the balance sheet as “right-of-use” (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities. Leases are classified as either operating or finance leases and lease expense is recognized within “General and administrative expenses” (airport and heliport terminals and offices) and “Cost of revenues” (aircraft leases embedded within certain capacity purchase agreements). As a lessee, for operating leases, total lease expense is recognized using a straight-line method. Finance leases are treated as the purchase of an asset on a financing basis. ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. ROU assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the estimated present value of lease payments over the lease term.

When available, the Company uses the rate implicit in the lease in determining the present value of the future minimum lease payments. However, the Company's leases generally do not provide a readily determinable implicit rate. Therefore, the Company estimates the incremental borrowing rate to discount lease payments based on information available at the inception of the lease. The incremental borrowing rate represents an estimate of the interest rate we would incur at lease commencement to borrow an amount equal to the lease payments on a collateralized basis over the term of the lease.

Our lease terms include options to extend the lease when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Leases with a term of 12 months or less are not recorded on our consolidated balance sheets. Our lease agreements do not contain
any residual value guarantees. Under certain of our capacity purchase agreements with third-party aircraft operators, we do not own the underlying aircraft. However, since we control the specific aircraft used, the aircraft is deemed to be leased for accounting purposes. For these capacity purchase agreements, we account for the lease and non-lease components separately. The lease component consists of the aircraft and the non-lease components consist of flight operations. We allocated the consideration in the capacity purchase agreements to the lease and non-lease components based on the Company’s best estimate of standalone value.

See Note 7 for additional information.

Warrant Liability
The Company accounts for warrants as either equity-classified or liability-classified instruments based on an assessment of the warrant’s specific terms and applicable authoritative guidance in ASC 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity (“ASC 480”) and ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging (“ASC 815”). The assessment considers whether the warrants are freestanding financial instruments pursuant to ASC 480, meet the definition of a liability pursuant to ASC 480, and whether the warrants meet all of the requirements for equity classification under ASC 815, including whether the warrants are indexed to the Company’s own common shares and whether the warrant holders could potentially require “net cash settlement” in a circumstance outside of the Company’s control, among other conditions for equity classification. This assessment, which requires the use of professional judgment, is conducted at the time of warrant issuance and as of each subsequent, quarterly, period-end date while the warrants are outstanding.

For issued or modified warrants that meet all of the criteria for equity classification, the warrants are required to be recorded as a component of additional paid-in capital at the time of issuance. For issued or modified warrants that do not meet all the criteria for equity classification, the warrants are required to be recorded at their initial fair value on the date of issuance and each balance sheet date thereafter. The Company accounts for the warrants issued in connection with its Initial Public Offering in accordance with the guidance contained in ASC 815-40-15-7D, under which the warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment and must be recorded as liabilities. Accordingly, the Company classifies the warrants as liabilities at their fair value and adjusts the warrants to fair value at each reporting period. This liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date until exercised, and any change in fair value is recognized in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations. See Notes 14 and 15 for additional information.

Concentrations
Financial instruments which potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consists principally of cash amounts on deposit with financial institutions. At times, the Company’s cash in banks is in excess of the Federal Deposit Insurance corporation (“FDIC”) insurance limit. The Company has not experienced any loss as a result of these deposits.
Major Customers
For the years ended December 31, 2022, September 30, 2021, and the transition period ended December 31, 2021, there was no single customer that generated 10% or more of the Company’s revenue.
Most of the Company’s customers remit payment in advance of the date of the flight. Accounts receivable consists principally of amounts due from the Company’s MediMobility Organ Transport Customers that receive terms for payment, along with receivables from credit card processors. One customer accounted for 13% of the Company’s outstanding accounts receivable as of December 31, 2022. No customer accounted for 10% or more of the Company’s outstanding accounts receivable as of December 31, 2021.
Major Vendors
One vendor accounted for 12% of the Company’s purchases from operating vendors for the year ended December 31, 2022. Two vendors accounted for 12% and 12%, respectively, of the Company’s purchases from operating vendors for the year ended September 30, 2021. No vendor accounted for 10% or more of the Company’s purchase from operating vendors for the transition period ended December 31, 2021.
One vendor accounted for 20% of the Company’s outstanding accounts payable as of December 31, 2022. One vendor accounted for 13% of the Company’s outstanding payable as of December 31, 2021.
Foreign Currency Translation

All of our foreign subsidiaries use their local currency as their functional currency. Assets and liabilities are translated from the local functional currency into U.S. Dollars at the exchange rate on the balance sheet date and revenue and expenses are translated at the average exchange rate for the period. Translation adjustments are recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income. Foreign currency gains and losses arising from transactions not in the subsidiaries local currency are recorded in results of operations.
Recently Issued Accounting Standards - Adopted

On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2021-08, Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities From Contracts With Customers, or ASU 2021-08, that requires acquiring companies to apply ASC 606 to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities from contracts with customers acquired in a business combination consistent with those recorded by the acquiring company. The Company does not have significant contracts with customers requiring performance beyond delivery. To the extent we acquire additional companies in our existing lines of business, the adoption of this standard will not have a material impact on our results of operations or financial position.

In December 2019, FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Simplification of Income Taxes (Topic 740) Income Taxes (“ASU 2019-12”). ASU 2019-12 simplifies the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740. The amendments also improve consistent application of and simplify U.S. GAAP for other areas of Topic 740 by clarifying and amending existing guidance. ASU 2019-12 is effective for public companies for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2020, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The adoption of the ASU did not have a significant impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements - Not Adopted

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-06, Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging— Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40). The objective of this update is to simplify the accounting for convertible preferred stock by removing the existing guidance in ASC 470-20, Debt: Debt with Conversion and Other Options,(“ASC 470-20”), that requires entities to account for beneficial conversion features and cash conversion features in equity, separately from the host convertible debt or preferred stock. The guidance in ASC 470-20 applies to convertible instruments for which the embedded conversion features are not required to be bifurcated from the host contract and accounted for as derivatives. In addition, the amendments revise the scope exception from derivative accounting in ASC 815-40 for freestanding financial instruments and embedded features that are both indexed to the issuer’s own stock and classified in stockholders’ equity, by removing certain criteria required for equity classification. These amendments are expected to result in more freestanding financial instruments qualifying for equity classification (and, therefore, not accounted for as derivatives), as well as fewer embedded features requiring separate accounting from the host contract. This amendment also further revises the guidance in ASU 260, Earnings per Share, to require entities to calculate diluted earnings per share (EPS) for convertible instruments by using the if-converted method. In addition, entities must presume share settlement for purposes of calculating diluted EPS when an instrument may be settled in cash or shares. The amendments in ASU 2020-06 are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, with early adoption permitted. The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2020-06 to have a significant impact on its consolidated financial statements.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326), Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments. The ASU changes accounting for credit losses on loans receivable and debt securities from an incurred loss methodology to an expected credit loss methodology. Among other things, ASU 2016-13 requires the measurement of all expected credit losses for financial assets held at the reporting date based on historical experience, current conditions, and reasonable and supportable forecasts. Accordingly, ASU 2016-13 requires the use of forward-looking information to form credit loss estimates. In addition, ASU 2016-13 amends the accounting for credit losses on debt securities and purchased financial assets with credit deterioration. In November, 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-10, which delayed the effective date for ASU 2016-13 for smaller reporting companies, resulting in ASU 2016-13
becoming effective in the first quarter of 2023 for the Company. Earlier adoption is permitted; however, the Company elected not to adopt the ASU early. The Company does not expect the adoption of ASU 2016-13 to have a significant impact on its consolidated financial statements.