Helix Friendly Flyer Promo — train an additional pilot for free, a $9,500 value.

Meet us and fly the Pivotal flight simulator at Oshkosh Booth 361, July 22-28.

Media Coverage

Are Flying Cars Finally Here?

I would have flown in the direction of the hills and the sky and never come back; I would be up there still.

Pivotal Delivers Personal eVTOLs For U.S. Air Force Testing

U.S. startup Pivotal has delivered four of eight BlackFly ultralight electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) vehicles for evaluation by the U.S. Air Force’s AFWerx innovation unit under the Agility Prime program.

The Flying Car Is Dead. Long live the Personal Airborne Mobility Device.

Pivotal is careful not to call its products flying cars, though these craft are easier to use than a Cessna.

This New eVTOL Aircraft Can Be Flown By Anyone, Even Without A Pilots License

Pivotal (formerly known as Opener) has recently begun taking orders for its first light eVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) aircraft produced at scale.

CES 2024: The Best in Travel Tech, From Personal Planes and a will.i.am.-Designed Mercedes-Benz Sound System to an AI-Enabled E-Bike

The future has landed: flying cars have arrived (kind of) in the form of Pivotal's Helix.

Personal Aircraft Requiring No Certificate to Fly Hits U.S. Market

If you've dreamed of taking to the skies but are too busy to put in the hours for a full program of flight training, there's a strange new aircraft you can fly without a certificate — and it's now on sale in the U.S.

CES 2024 in Las Vegas: AI takes center stage at the consumer tech showcase

Electric vehicles are back in full fleet this CES, including the new Helix ultralight eVTOL from Pivotal. It's a fully carbon-fiber, 348-pound "almost" flying car concept, but without wheels.

Pivotal begins US sales of the Helix - a light eVTOL that doesn't require FAA pilot certification

Following the debut of the production-intent design of its Helix light eVTOL, electric aviation startup Pivotal has begun selling the personal aircraft in the US.

Helix EVTOL Flying Craft Starts At $190,000, Deliveries Start June 10

The little bean-shaped Helix features two banks of four electric rotors front and rear, eight rotors total. Neither the wings nor the rotors tilt, thus saving a lot of complexity.

This Personal Aircraft Can Be Yours For Less Than $200k

At the 2023 UP.Summit, Forbes spoke to Ken Karklin, the CEO of Pivotal, about their personal flying vehicle Helix. The production EVTOL will cost $190,000, and the company will begin taking orders in January 2024.

Opener.aero Rebrands To Pivotal, Unveils Production Configuration

Personal electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) startup Opener.aero announced a rebrand to Pivotal, as it rolled out its production-configuration Helix aircraft, including numerous design changes from the previous iteration.

Opener Rebrands to Pivotal and Unveils Helix, Its First Scalable Production Aircraft

The company’s BlackFly personal eVTOL is one of the first of its kind to be sold and delivered to customers.

Watch: Pivotal demonstrates its BlackFly eVTOL during the UP.Summit

Attendees watch as Pivotal demonstrates its BlackFly eVTOL during the UP.Summit 2023 at the Circle T Ranch in Westlake.

Opener rebrands to Pivotal, unveils new Helix production eVTOL aircraft

California-based eVTOL developer Opener has unveiled the company’s first scalable production aircraft that it calls Helix. And along with the new aircraft,comes a new identity — Opener has now been rebranded to Pivotal.

eVTOL developer Opener rebrands as Pivotal, unveils production-ready Helix aircraft

Light eVTOL developer Opener.aero has announced it has changed its company name to Pivotal, following the debut of first scalable production aircraft, Helix.

Opener is recruiting early adopters for a chance to try out its unique personal eVTOL

Light eVTOL developer Opener has announced a unique opportunity as it looks to achieve market commercialization of its BlackFly aircraft.

I Fly Opener’s BlackFly eVTOL > A gripping preview of urban air mobility

On a gin-clear December day, I’m sitting under the plexiglass bubble of a radically new kind of aircraft.

Finally, An EVTOL You Can Buy (Soon)

If electrical vertical takeoff and landing aircraft do manage to revolutionize transportation, the date of 5 October 2011, may live on in aviation lore.

Electrify your commute

Opener’s BlackFly eVTOL has been wowing audiences at events this summer. STEPHEN BRIDGEWATER speaks exclusively to company CEO Ken Karklin about the eye-catching craft and the company’s plans for the future.

Photos: Pacific Airshow goes high and mighty over Huntington Beach

Huntington Beach hosted the Pacific Airshow this weekend, featuring incredible stunt performances, precision parachute drops, vintage military aircraft and even an experimental flying car.

Testing Paces Opener’s Progress With Personal eVTOL

Ultralight aircraft are usually the simplest of flying machines, often just tube and fabric—no certification, no pilot’s license, no commercial use. But several advanced air mobility (AAM) startups see the FAA’s Part 103 rules for ultralight vehicles as a way to bring electric vertical takeoff and...

EAA AirVenture Draws Record-Setting 650,000 Attendees

In 2021, the Experimental Aircraft Association “tiptoed” into hosting the return of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, the world’s largest air show, following its cancellation in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, organizers went full bore and have not looked back.

Gallery: The Best of AirVenture Oshkosh 2022

Our photographers scoured the grounds for a week. These are our personal favorites.

BlackFly maneuvers over Oshkosh

The Opener BlackFly's two twilight flights were the highlights among a few showings by personal electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2022. Opener’s Version 3 vehicle was on display, and flew in the night airshow and the Twilight Flight Fest. Last year, the BlackFly hovered only, and this year it added maneuvering—an impressive improvement to an already impressive airshow routine.

Latest in aviation technology featured at EAA AirVenture 2022

The advancements in technology on display at EAA AirVenture 2022 are out of this world.

Opener Blackfly: the Delightful eVTOL Personal Aircraft Coming To Hangars Near You

The Opener Blackfly is one of the first legitimate attempts at bringing a mass-produced eVTOL personal transportation vehicle to the market in any significant capacity. No wonder this example sits among a host of other eVTOL concepts at the Cradle of Aviation in Garden City, New York. On the former site where Charles Lindbergh took off bound for Paris, these eVTOLs may not have the same ambitions. But it can't be argued; they're still cool as heck.

See today's air taxis and other VTOL aircraft

The Transformative Vertical Flight conference in Silicon Valley in January hosted a collection of vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. Here's a look.

Taking a flying car for a test drive

After years of development, the BlackFly personal aerial vehicle will soon be on sale. Correspondent John Blackstone set out to see how someone with no flying experience could manage behind the controls.

What Looks Like a Giant Bumblebee, Can Fly Anywhere, and Started Out as a Car?

We’re not going to get into the “which is the first eVTOL to do this or that” thing, because there are several companies creating these types of air vehicles at the moment, in various stages of development. Aptly-named Blackfly, this particular eVTOL is not one of the newest, but certainly one of the most impressive ones. It has come a long way and recently had its first public manned eVTOL demonstration flight, at the EAA (Experimental Aircraft Association) AirVenture 2021.

This New One-Person Electric Aircraft Will Cost About The Same as a Luxury SUV

If some world organization ever creates an award for the strangest-looking, yet practical personal aerial vehicle, Opener’s Blackfly should capture the trophy. Blackfly last weekend performed for the crowds at AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisc., competing against Volocopter to be named as the first piloted eVTOL at a public event.

Experience flight with this personal aerial craft

Silicon Valley startup Opener created Blackfly as a personal aerial vehicle that allows operators to take flight and land vertically. The all-electric craft has a range of 25 miles with the ability to reach speeds of 60 mph, though the international model has a top speed of over 80 mph.

Opener shows off its fixed-wing air taxi Blackfly in first public flight – Future Blink

The electric aerial vehicle company OPENER just made history with its vehicle, BlackFly.

What Is a Flying Car? Inside Silicon Valley's 10-year quest to make soaring above a crowded street as easy as calling an Uber.

It was sleek, cone-shaped, a little confusing — like something Hollywood would give a sci-fi villain for a quick getaway. It wasn’t a helicopter. And it wasn’t an airplane. It was a cross between the two, with a curved hull, two small wings, and eight spinning rotors lined up across its nose and tail.

JUST OUTTA BETA: 8-BIT ASTRONOMY, SOLAR YACHT, AND MORE

Quadcopters make fine toys, but true flying cars need eight rotors. Opener’s single-seat octocopter classifies as an ultralight plane, but with its vertical takeoff and landing capabilities, you can skip the runway and touch down in the office parking lot...

6 Flying cars that you might actually be able to own (and fly) in your lifetime

Today, commuting to work in a personal helicopter or private jet is something that’s only really available to billionaire CEOs, hedge fund managers, and “one hit wonder” rappers who are six months away from bankruptcy...

Electric Flight Dominates Air Mobility News At The 2018 International EAA AirVenture Oshkosh Event

The great thing about air events is that airplanes can come from far away. The not so great thing is that if the event is far, you too have to travel to it. But this year’s 2018 EAA AirVenture Oshkosh was well worth the travel, as it attempted to show a clearer picture of our near future mobility...

You can pilot the Blackfly personal flyer without a license

Watch the What The Future video!

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2018: Black Fly, the Most Important Plane in Oshkosh History?

Enjoying its world debut this week over at the EAA’s Innovation Center is a thing called Black Fly, which is…oh, we’re tired of figuring out what to call these things. It’s an ultralight (Part 103) polycopter that can be either autonomously or remotely controlled—no, the idea of “flying” a craft that’s being remotely controlled by someone safe on the ground doesn’t appeal much to us, either. But Black Fly, much unlike other futuristic looking craft isn’t flying pie in the sky. It’s been flying for almost a decade now and has amassed a substantial amount of time in the process...

BlackFly: The Newest Flying Car on the Block Debuts ar AirVenture OshKosh

In parts of the Northeast, the black fly is regarded as a pest, an annual springtime annoyance that will make you rethink plans for hiking or camping. But in Silicon Valley, a company called Opener has introduced a flying vehicle that could render the term—when written as one word and with a capital F—synonymous with convenience...

BlackFly Ultralight Attracts Attention in AirVenture's Innovation Showcase

Opener, Inc. brought version three of its BlackFly ultralight aircraft to AirVenture 2018. In this video, Alan Eustace explains the history of the aircraft and some of its features...

BlackFly electric personal VTOL ultralight aircraft is USA-qualified

OPENER has announced that its BlackFly ultralight VTOL aircraft has been qualified for use in the US. The company says that BlackFly is simple to operate and master with no formal licensing needed in the US. BlackFly is fully amphibious and is designed to operate from small grassy areas for distances of up to 25 miles...

Watch impressive new all-electric personal VTOL aircraft working prototype

The growing space of VTOL personal electric aircraft has got yet another entry from a new startup. This latest working prototype of a new ultralight all-electric personal VTOL aircraft has about 25 miles of range...

The BlackFly Is a Flying Car That Doesn’t Require a Pilot’s License

We at ExtremeTech are as disappointed as anyone that the flying cars we were implicitly promised over the years have not yet arrived. A Canadian firm called Opener wants to finally make flying cars a reality with the newly announced BlackFly. Unlike past attempts, Opener isn’t trying to match the capabilities of a car...

Automakers, aerospace and startups are banking on a 'flying car' future

Autonomous technology is moving us closer to the lofty flying-car future that we've been dreaming about for the past century. What does autonomous tech have to do with flying cars? Computing power...

The BlackFly by Opener is a flying car that could turn us all into pilots

Forget self-driving cars. The race to build the first flying car is now very much on. This week, Californian startup Opener officially threw its hat in the flying car ring with the debut of BlackFly, heralded as “the world’s first ultralight all-electric fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft.” ...

A Week in Technology, July 16-20, 2018

BlackFly Recreational eVTOL Unveiled A second recreational electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) aircraft has emerged from secrecy, following June’s unveiling of the multirotor Kitty Hawk Flyer. The BlackFly, developed by Silicon Valley startup Opener, has eight rotors on tandem wings fixed at high incidence. This allows the single-seat aircraft to take off and land near-vertically as well as hover...

Opener is the latest startup to reveal plans for a personal aircraft

The race to build a "flying car" has just become more crowded. This week, the Canadian company Opener revealed its new vehicle, called BlackFly. The one-person aircraft can travel up to 25 miles at a speed of 62 miles per hour. Because the operations are a simple joystick, according to the release BlackFly shouldn't require a pilot's license...

Incredible BlackFly flying car takes to the skies over California - and you don't even need a licence to operate it

They’re a staple feature of many science-fiction blockbusters, and now flying cars are becoming a reality. Opener has revealed BlackFly - the world’s first ultralight all-electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. The aircraft has a single-seat, and amazingly, doesn’t require a formal licence or any special skills to operate...

Opener Officially Launches Single-Person EVTOL Personal Aerial Vehicle, Blackfly

After a solid two years of uninterrupted electric aircraft news, we’re happy to announce that the first single-personal electric aircraft has arrived and electric urban mobility has taken a giant leap forward...

Silicon Valley Startup Unveils Blackfly, the Latest Entrant in Race to Field a Flying Car

A Silicon Valley startup called Opener is taking the wraps off a single-seat, all-electric flying vehicle known as BlackFly, which the company says will require no formal licensing in the U.S. ...

Flying car innovator believes he can finally make it a reality

No technological dream has captured the minds of the media quite like the flying car. Marcus Leng of Blackfly believes his invention will allow it to become a reality. CBS News correspondent John Blackstone, who has chased down the flying car fantasy for 30 years, reports on this Silicon Valley innovator...

Opener Reveals Ultalight eVTOL

After nine years of covert development and testing, California-based Opener Inc. revealed what it is calling the world’s first ultralight fixed-wing, all-electric vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft on Thursday. According to the company, the amphibious BlackFly has already completed more than 1,000 flights and flown over 10,000 miles. As an ultralight, the single-seat aircraft does not require an FAA certificate to operate...

Opener Unveils first USA-Qualified Ultralight All-Electric Personal VTOL Aircraft

OPENER, Inc., a pioneer of aero vehicles for consumer travel, today revealed BlackFly, the world’s first ultralight, all-electric, fixed-wing, vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft. BlackFly is a single-seat personal aerial vehicle (PAV) designed and built for a new world of three-dimensional transportation. BlackFly is simple to master and requires no formal licensing (in U.S.) or special skills to operate safely. Though BlackFly has full amphibious capabilities, it is primarily designed to easily operate from small grassy areas and travel distances of up to 25 miles at a speed of 62 mph (U.S. restriction)...