http://www.npr.org/2013/06/03/188185369 ... onthly-fee

For many of the same reasons the PC-12 kicks the stuffing out of light jets in most applications, I think this startup has a much better shot that those that were planned around the Eclipse back when it was a <$1m paper airplane.

Discuss.

Dumb idea, will never work.

Its a great idea but is it economically feasible? They'll need an extra aircraft or two in the rotation just to minimize downtime.

Interesting concept. But I don't see how they can survive. Everytime anyone has tried selling "seats" on a private airplane cheaply its never worked. The reasons are many...if flying privately I want my flight to be "private", not shared with 5-6 other people. And I want to pick my own departure time. People with disposable income like the perks of flying "private", which is why they are willing to pay more. Take away the perks and flying private becomes like the airlines, except in a smaller plane, with smaller seats that are designed for people who know each other (club seating), no flight attendant, and no food service. The only thing gained over the airlines becomes the lack of security. But if flying first class, which these shared-charter companies compete against, security only takes 5-10min. And personally I don't see the lack of security as a good thing when flying with complete strangers.
I think Surf Air would be beneficial to people who commute between these cities frequently and are looking for a low cost solution. But I don't see enough volume there to support a fleet of PC-12's.
I do wish them well.

I like it. I think it's innovative. Is there enough of a traveling market between SoCal and NorCal to justify it? I don't know, but I want to see it work!

$1650 a month for unlimited flights? Better hope the average subscriber doesn't want more than 2 flights a month...

Tricky. Scheduled flights, but not 121? Part 121 that doesn't have to use screening?

Part 135, but scheduled?

Part 91 with subscribers as "owners" or "partners"?

It's either the next SWA, Netfilx, or a regulatory hole waiting to be plugged. I'm betting on the latter. I don't think it can be allowed to succeed. FAA and other airlines will be all over them with regulators and lawyers.

Dan

this is sad.. their website SurfAir is down.

It's possible their hosting package got too many hits! WSJ was talking about them today as well.

I hope they succeed, there are many markets where the airlines need to get kicked in the butt. Florida could probably use MIA-TLH-JAX service..

[quote="Marcus Pradel"]this is sad.. their website SurfAir is down.

Website worked fine for me.

This is another reincarnation of PlaneRed, discussed here.

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=63710&hilit=planered

They originally planned to fly Caravans, then switched to PC12.

It sounds like an interesting concept, but the economics look goofy. The only way it's gonna work if a lot of people buy a membership but never fly (i.e. gym concept).

In any case, they have been at it since 2011 and still aren't flying, so one's got to wonder how real they are.

There are several companies doing scheduled 135...again. I thought it went away when the regionals went to 121, but some of the small operators flying EAS are using Caravans, PC12s, and run-out Cessna 402s.

I believe Cape Air (402) pax goto the terminal, but SeaPort (PC12) parks at the FBO and shuttles their passengers to the terminal.

Really hope it works, but really wonder how . . . Apart from the economics, Dan raises good regulatory points. I always thought you needed two engines to carry paying pax in IFR (given the CA coastal wx, there will be a lot of marine induced IFR, no?).. . BWTHDIK.

--Gordon

There is even a Caravan on Floats Airline operating here in South Florida with service to the Bahamas weekly, but not every day.

The rest of the time, they fly 135-like runs.. sell a few seats, combine some cargo & Go!

Here is a similar service, different pricing structure though.

http://www.nwfdailynews.com/business/lo ... t-1.142999

It has been tried before at Destin, and was short lived.

I wish them all the best of luck, it's tough to serve a route reliably if you are not sure to fill the seats, and if the seats are filled, somebody is going to be mad when they can't get on. 8 to 10 seats doesn't allow for a big buffer.

Rick