I’m not objective. Not when it comes to flying. I’m an unabashed supporter.
There are a lot of people far smarter than me trying to do some amazing things in aerospace. Why wouldn’t I support them?
I’d put Rod Rakic and Adam Fast in that “far smarter than me” group. And if I’m honest, that isn’t a high hurdle to clear.
Anyway, Rod and Adam were the creators of OpenAirplane and FlyOtto. The former had the goal of making “renting an airplane as easy as renting a car.” The latter sought to “match travelers with pilots and planes, on demand.”
Lofty goals. Both of them.
From listening to Rod’s presentation at AirVenture back at the beginning of the last decade, I was hooked.
“The only thing that can save aviation is aviating,” said Rod at the time at AeroInnovate. Bingo. Such a succinct statement, and true to its core.
For those reasons, and more, I was shocked and saddened to read that by Dec. 29, 2019, both OpenAirplane and FlyOtto would be no more.
True to form, Rod wrote a wonderful farewell that he published on Medium.com titled, “Contact Ground, Point Niner.”
A few take-aways from Rod’s farewell…
“More than 25,000 people had signed up to fly with us across the two platforms.” 25,000? That is a lot of people.
“It’s tough to get pilots off the couch and into the cockpit.” Ouch. As a pilot who flies far too little each year, I can honestly say it is not because I’m lazing about on the couch. But “couch” is likely a filler for anything that occupies a higher place on the list of priorities.
Most telling however was “Survey data is not anywhere close to being as valuable as being in the market and following the money.” Bingo. People will tell you how great an idea is right up to the point when they have to pull out their wallet. Getting pilots – anyone really – to part with hard-earned cash takes just a bit more. And that bit is often too high a hurdle.
I applaud Rod and Adam for the effort and look forward to catching up with them at one of 2020’s aviation events. They’re both energetic and unabashed supporters of aviation.
Just my kind of people.
I really thought OpenAirplane was a neat idea. Sorry to see it go.
It is unfortunate that these two ventures failed this time, but keep pushing, you will find a way. We have always had rules and regulations and even aviation traditions, some good and others not so much. In the immortal words of that long ago comic strip, “Pogo”, “We have met the enemy and he is us”. If you take a group of RV owners, for example, you will hear mostly stories of the trips they took to see the grandkids or the Grand Canyon, etc. You take a group of aircraft owners and you will hear mostly about “Did you hear how Joe got screwed on his last annual” or “Fuel is soooo expensive” etc. If you are a potential newbie, which group would you want to join? The ones having fun or the whiners. Aviation has never been cheap nor will it ever be and yes there are things that we can make much better. To me, even after 50 years in aviation, the joy is having altitude between my feet and the ground whether it is for myself, a charter customer to an important meeting or a potential student on an introductory flight. We need to be much more welcoming to newbies instead treating them almost like an Amish shunning and work together on fixing the not so good things. Aviation is still the second best human activity I know of.
The FAA, correctly does NOT allow private pilots to fly strangers for cash…So any site or any method to connect ‘passengers’ and pilots, even if the passenger is only splitting the fuel cost is illegal. The path to getting money to fly strangers is to get a Commercial/Instrument rating and be ready to get 100 hour annuals. The commitment to fly for money is steep…as it should be…
It appears you are not at all familiar with the business model of FlyOtto which was specifically limited to Part 135 operators. It was nothing like the Uber-like flightsharing sites/apps. Rod and Adam were very particular to make sure that all operations were in accordance with the FARs.
OpenAirplane utilized a standard pilot checkout to allow a licensed pilot to rent same/similar aircraft throughout a rental network of flight schools and FBOs.
Incorrect.
The shared-expense privilege is really an exception to the general rule that a private pilot may not legally be paid to pilot an aircraft. … Section 61.118(b) of the Federal Aviation Regulations very simply says: “A private pilot may share the operating expenses of a flight with his passengers.”
Yes But…While it is an exception, legal cost sharing for Pvt Pilots is more complicated than a simple read of FAR 61.118(b) would suggest. The FAA, through multiple legal interpretations, has consistently interpreted this exception to require a pilot to share with his passengers a bona fide common purpose for conducting the flight. In other words, the pilot had to have a need to be going to the destination anyway and not just building time. Search for the FAA’s Bobertz Interpretation as a good example.
Bottom line, cost sharing flights for Private Pilots are much more restrictive than most believe its.
Every trip booked with FlyOtto was operated legally under part 135. The FAA even applauded us for our ability to get more people flying, innovating within the regulatory framework.
The issue in my humble opinion is not the “couch” nor the pocket book. The issue is the momentum of aviation rules, regulations, and even tradition. Rod and Adam tried to break free from the norm and create something new that just didn’t fit the “good ole” aviation dogma. We need them and others to keep pushing the envelope and drag the aviation world into new business models that will work. This needs to start with the new generation of aviators and potential pilots, not with the existing 500+ hour pilots.
I’m from the “Good Ole” aviation dogma days were a pilot was actually a pilot, THANK GOD. This brave new world you speak of won’t have actual pilots or aviators but drone programmers. If the flying cars for the masses ever materializes there will be even less want or desire to become a “pilot”. If flying needs to fit a business model, I’m afraid there are few seats available.
Flying use to be fun until the faa regulated it to death.