Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Right-of-Use Asset and Operating Lease Liability

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Right-of-Use Asset and Operating Lease Liability
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2023
Leases [Abstract]  
Right-of-Use Asset and Operating Lease Liability Right-of-Use Asset and Operating Lease Liability
Blade’s operating leases consist of airport and heliport terminals, offices, vehicles and aircraft leases that are embedded within certain Capacity Purchase Agreements (“CPAs”). Upon meeting certain criteria as stated in ASC 842 Leases, the lease component of a CPA would be accounted for as an embedded lease, with a corresponding balance included in the operating right-of-use (“ROU”) asset and lease liability.
During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company added the following leases in accordance with ASC 842:

A CPA for two aircraft was executed in August 2023, with a term from May 23, 2023 through August 31, 2024. In case of early termination by Blade, a one-year flight hour guarantee will be pro-rated to the date of the termination. In addition, Blade has the right for immediate termination with no penalty if a government authority enacts travel restrictions.

Effective in February 2023, Blade entered into an agreement for a three-year term ending February 14, 2026 for three aircraft (previous term was less than one year). This CPA was restated and amended in September 2023 for modified revenue guarantees and additional five months (for a total three-year term ending July 31, 2026). This CPA was further restated and amended in December 2023 to encompass modified revenue guarantees and an additional nine months (for a revised term from August 1, 2023 through April 30, 2027). In case of early termination by Blade, a one-year revenue guarantee will be pro-rated to the date of the termination. In addition, Blade has the right for immediate termination with no penalty if a government authority enacts travel restrictions.

Effective in March 2022, Blade entered into an agreement for a three-year term ending March 31, 2025 for six aircraft. This CPA was restated and amended in March 2023 for seven aircraft and additional two years (for a total five-year term ending March 31, 2028). This CPA was further restated and amended in December 2023 for up to eight aircraft for a five-year term ending March 31, 2028. Blade has the right to terminate the agreement without cause upon 60 days’ written notice, upon such termination a one-year flight hour guarantee will be pro-rated to the date of the termination and the operator will be entitled to retain any unapplied deposit paid by Blade at the time of such termination, in addition, Blade has the right for immediate termination with no penalty if a government authority enacts travel restrictions.

The Company allocated the consideration in the capacity purchase agreements to the lease and non-lease components based on their relative standalone value. The non-lease components for these agreements primarily consist of the costs associated with flight operations. The Company determined its best estimate of the standalone value of the individual components by considering observable information from publicly available market rates.

In addition, during the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company recognized a right-of-use asset and a lease liability for a pre-existing terminal facility lease in New York City. Prior to recognizing it this year, this lease had been accounted for as short term lease, in accordance with its contractual terms. Following the completion of leasehold improvements to the facilities, the Company reassessed the likelihood of renewal and determined that the lease would be extended to a longer
term. As a result, this lease is now accounted for as an operating lease with a corresponding balance included in the ROU asset and lease liability on the balance sheet.

See Note 11, “Commitments and Contingencies”, for additional information about our capacity purchase agreements.
Balance sheet information related to the Company’s leases is presented below:
December 31, 2023 December 31, 2022
Operating leases:
Operating right-of-use asset $ 23,484  $ 17,692 
Operating lease liability, current 4,787  3,362 
Operating lease liability, long-term 19,738  14,970 

As of December 31, 2023, included in the table above is $21,081, $3,215 and $18,871 of operating right-of-use asset, current operating lease liability, and long-term operating lease liability, respectively, under aircraft leases that are embedded within the capacity purchase agreements. As of December 31, 2022, included in the table above is $14,916, $1,748 and $13,705 of operating right-of-use asset, current operating lease liability, and long-term operating lease liability, respectively, under aircraft leases that are embedded within the capacity purchase agreements.

The following provides details of the Company’s lease expense:
Year Ended December 31,
2023 2022
Lease cost:
Short-term lease cost
$ 434  $ 304 
Operating lease cost
2,072  1,196 
Operating lease cost - Cost of revenue
4,618  1,379 
Total $ 7,124  $ 2,879 
Operating lease costs related to aircraft leases that are embedded within capacity purchase agreements are reported as part of Cost of revenue.

Other information related to leases is presented below:
December 31, 2023
Weighted-average discount rate – operating lease
9.00  %
Weighted-average remaining lease term – operating lease (in years)
6.3
As of December 31, 2023, the expected annual minimum lease payments of the Company’s operating lease liabilities were as follows:
For the Year Ended December 31
2024 $ 6,770 
2025 5,459 
2026 5,205 
2027 4,354 
2028 2,707 
Thereafter 8,252 
Total future minimum lease payments, undiscounted
32,747 
Less: Imputed interest for leases in excess of one year
(8,222)
Present value of future minimum lease payments
$ 24,525