Instead of keeping it around for emergencies, it is now my main method of traversing the map - at least until the jetpack. It is a bit faster, but also it is much more fun than walking.
There are now observation towers all over my starting area, that I use as jumping off points when moving between production facilities.
Totally, before this update I just wouldn’t craft them because you need fabric, and I was using all my biomass in my power plants. Now though it feels like a good early game flying option until you get the Jetpack