#flightsharing

PLANEsharing really should be called FLIGHTsharing, just like RIDEsharing is different than CARsharing. 

The argument against #planesharing isn't easy to dismiss. Balancing private privileges with public safety is going to be an ongoing debate, but for now, the question is settled under current regulation.

The story broke this week, detailing the FAA's legal interpretation on the concept of planesharing as pitched by AirPooler, Flytenow, and many others...

FAA Bans Planesharing Startups

There will be no “ZimRide for airplanes”, according to an FAA ruling released today that prohibits private pilots from publicly offering seats on their planes in exchange for gas money... 

(via techcrunch)

None of this adversely affects OpenAirplane, our operators, or our pilots. We designed OpenAirplane to color within the lines from the beginning. Our business model never assumed that the FAA would ignore decades of precedent, data, and the law.

If you want to dig deeper into the topic, check out this post, "Sometimes Regulations Are Written In Blood" which I posted over on the AOPA Opinion Leaders blog, and over on Medium. I'm feeling no schadenfreude here. Props to Steve at AirPooler for pressing the issue and getting a clear ruling rather than trying to operate a grey market.

Only a significant deregulation of private aviation can make planesharing viable.

Recently, we had a client request a trip from Montauk, NY to Boston, MA wait a few hours and return later that day. If you're not familiar with these airports, Montauk (MTP) is on the eastern tip of Long Island and has a 3200ft runway.

To travel from Montauk to Boston your options are:

Drive- round-trip travel time is over 10hrs and includes an expensive ferry ride.

Airline- not available, you could drive to NYC and fly from there, but that's probably more time consuming than driving directly to Boston.

Traditional charter- The cheapest charter flight available was almost $3000 in a Cirrus aircraft. 

It happened to be the case another client, a commercial flight student, training in a Cirrus out of Danbury, CT read our post about individual pilots sharing flights to offset costs and was interested in trying it. We offered the Montauk people a SharedFlight with the student and they accepted; the results couldn't have been better.

As a note- I have a relationship with the flight school where the airplane was rented, I joined the flight as the "safety/mentor/instructor pilot," and to meet both parties. I explained my experience included over 1000 hours of instruction given in Cirrus and I fly two private jets for a charter operator near New York City. The risks of the flight were low and very manageable. (You can read previous posts on Intelijet's position regarding individual pilots sharing flights)

Here's how everyone benefited:

The passengers- They flew on the exact model aircraft available for charter, but for a fraction of the price. Their share of the expenses was $744.88 and they received all the benefits of a private flight- the time savings, flying from an airport close to home, not served by airlines and with the safety of an experienced pilot monitoring. The flight from MTP to BOS took 40 minutes.

The student- He's building flight time towards his commercial pilot license. This requires hopping in the airplane and going somewhere, usually, by himself and to places within his comfort zone or where risk are low. In the flight training biz we refer this as "burning holes in the sky" as it's flying for the sake of flying; building those hours. At a rental cost of $265/hr for the Cirrus, piloting isn't a cheap pursuit.

Instead, the student did a live scenario based training event, put in a position to make decisions, manage risk and evaluate outcomes. Done correctly and the understanding a students receives is far greater than just doing maneuvers or flying without purpose.

This scenario would normally be outside of a commercial student's comfort zone (large, busy airport at BOS, pressure of carrying passengers) and expensive, but instead it's a wonderful example of an opportunity to broaden their experience with an instructor present. SBT is something the FAA endorses and promotes throughout the industry. (Read about scenario based training)

The flight school- The entire round-trip cost $1489.76, this included the airplane, fuel, oil and fees. With each person self-aggregating on Intelijet, an effective sharing price of $132.50/hr for 2 people in the Cirrus is awesome. You can see why flight sharing opportunities are a great way to increase flight school activity and airplane utilization. In fact everyone was so happy with the outcome another flight has been scheduled, together.

This was a great trip, I personally had a lot of fun, it was a fantastic example of the sharing economy empowering people and creating opportunities that previously weren't available.

Part 2- When you take someone's money in exchange for transportation an external pressures to accomplish the mission forms. Our last post we told you pilots and air carriers can use Intelijet to find people to share empty seats and empty-legs with, but the regulatory consequences and risks are a little precarious. In this post we'll discuss why the risks are different and where opportunities for sharing safely exist for pilots of all skill levels. When you fly with charter operators and airlines you're flying on FAA certified air carriers. They're held to a higher standard and require more regulatory compliance than an individual pilot, however, the criteria for evaluating pilots and operators are very similar.

Intelijet advises all clients if we determine a flight, empty seat, empty-leg by anyone, enters into a higher risk category. Things we look at are:

Pilot's experience level, currency,  proficiency and training school

Aircraft's maintenance status, last inspection, age and equipment installation

Mission specific items- airports, weather, time of day, to name a few.

You can learn more about how Intelijet selects and evaluates an operation in a two part post from December, 2013 called- The Charter Operator Selection Process. If we determine too great a risk exist we'll find an alternative flight or not participate in the transaction. Although we're preventing some flights from happening, here are a few easy example of how pilots of all experience levels can enjoy the benefits of Intelijet's flight sharing-

Experienced and professional pilots- sharing empty seats on airplanes they fly often. If the pilot is proficient, this type of flight can be as good as any other charter flight, only a lot less expensive for everyone. I'm going to Toronto July 23th to 27th any takers, email me [email protected]

Flight Instructors- flight sharing is a great way for your students to offset some of the cost of training. Have them plan scenario-based trips and sell an empty seat or two, reducing their expense. Everyone's getting something they want, students saving money and getting a great learning experience, the passenger gets a private flight cheap, with an experienced flight instructor overseeing the mission.

Airplane owners- Do you have your own plane and employ professional pilots? A great way to offset some of the cost of ownership would be to sell a few empty seats, especially if you make frequent trips to fabulous places. People get excited to experience private aviation and it can be a great networking opportunity too.

I'm sure people will find even more great ways to have fun sharing flights. We're excited to see more pilots and operators take advantage of Intelijet's open marketplace.