The Difference Between ‘Getting There’ and ‘Being There’.
WingTips is about ‘getting there’. Airbnb is about ‘being there’.
“WingTips is transforming air travel as Airbnb did for lodging.”
In a strategy session with our Fractional CMO, Kris Potter, she said that WingTips is transformational on the same level as Airbnb. I responded, “Don’t you mean Uber and Lyft?”
She said, “No…”
I should have known better… Kris has a stellar background in travel marketing & martech so I sat back eager to hear more.
She explained how Airbnb had created a new service that didn't exist and thus solved the problem of travelers finding convenient and affordable lodging.
Uber and Lyft provide services that already existed at scale, but were decentralized, taxi and black car services. What they did was add a technical element through the App that made requesting a ride and paying for it far easier.
In contrast, Airbnb created a service that did not exist. Short-term renting of rooms was virtually non-existent, and renting of homes was limited, varied widely in service, and was quite often more expensive than an equivalent hotel stay. The renting of whole houses was localized, often only in vacation destinations, with websites acting as listing services, with no ability to complete the transaction online.
Airbnb focused on the central issue with renting someone’s house or room, trust. The App solved this on both sides of the transaction. Ratings and reviews of properties and renters provided a wealth of data for the other side of the transaction — giving both parties a sense of whom they were dealing with. The App provided a user-friendly interface for travelers, it provided transparency to both parties, offered payment security, and facilitated problem resolution.
My first experience as a guest.
I needed a place to stay in Telluride, Colorado for a business trip. It was during their peak season, rooms were scarce, and if available, they were pricey. So, I tried Airbnb. The process of booking was easy and hassle-free. I found a condo that was not only nicer than the hotels I was exploring, but it was also more economical and received exceptional ratings from past guests.
The experience was so enjoyable that when planning a trip to France, I found an apartment in Paris, instead of a hotel. The apartment looked amazing, but I would never have booked an apartment in a foreign country on a random website. Airbnb provided the confidence and security I needed to complete the booking. I was aware of all the costs upfront, my payment was secure, and I was able to easily review the property. Upon arrival, the property was better than I expected. I “accepted” the rental on the App, which instantly released my payment to the property owner.
Airbnb created a new lodging solution that scales by solving the core issues.
Kris convinced me that WingTips is transformative, but how exactly?
WingTips is offering a new service that does not currently exist and as such, we’re solving a regional air travel problem… for the everyday traveler.
THE PROBLEM:
Airlines offer limited regional air service, which makes trips between 125 and 300 miles very time-consuming.
First, when airlines flew regional flights years ago, it was between a limited number of airports with sufficient demand. This excluded thousands of airports, limiting the value of the service to travelers.
There is no public central source for tracking airline route changes, but a quick search finds that over the last decade, communities lost up to 75% of the flights to regional airports, and others lose airline service altogether. Industry trends make it likely this reduction in flights from regional airports will continue. Travel is a ‘means to an end’, we travel to get from one place to another… anything that increases travel time is bad.
Because commercial airlines offer limited regional air service, travelers are forced to one or more of the following:
— Drive to their destination, often for hours
— Drive longer distances to an airline airport
— Park in remote parking garages, often requiring a shuttle
— Arrive at the airport a minimum of one hour before departure
— Deal with long security lines
— Utilize connecting flights
— Drive longer distances from the arrival airport to their destination
The NASA SATS study found that airline travel had slowed down dramatically, to the point that its effective speed is about the same or longer than driving for many shorter trips. This is why it is likely that you will drive trips up to 200 miles instead of flying — there is no meaningful time savings from flying the airlines. This study was 20 years ago, and things have only gotten worse.
Travel is price sensitive, so “fast at any cost” is not a solution that scales. The Concorde is an example of very fast flights, but fares were unable to cover the cost of operations.
Private air charter can be used for regional trips. But the cost is prohibitive, making it is only accessible to a limited number of travelers, so it also does not scale.
THE SOLUTION:
WingTips is making regional travel available to the everyday traveler.
Remove as much travel time as possible at a cost that is accessible to everyday travelers. Through years of research, advanced technology, intellectual property, an easy-to-use interface, and a seasoned team of customer service representatives, WingTips has solved this problem. In addition to offering private charters to and from anywhere in the Continental US, WingTips now offers ‘shared charters’ for flights between 125 to 300 miles in the West, and soon in the Southern Great Plains.
We call them WingTips FastFlights.
WingTips FastFlights have a clear advantage in travel time versus driving. WingTips is consistently four times faster than driving when measured door to door. Airlines have few direct regional trips in this distance range so most require connecting flights, making airline flights the same travel time as driving. An interview on a business news site with a United Airlines VP explained that only 1% of travelers on 250-mile trips fly the trip. This is why WingTips is transforming regional travel, there is immense pent up demand for cost effective flights.
WingTips FastFlights offer convenience.
We fly in and out of general aviation airports, there are more than 5,000 in the US compared to the 300 airports utilized by commercial airlines.
This matters since 80% of the population in the US lives within 30 minutes of a WingTips airport. Only 20% of the population lives within 30 minutes of an airline airport.
WingTips flights are all non-stop, no connections.
WingTips is transforming travel by providing you the ability to cut travel time by 75%. A driving trip of four hours is reduced to an hour!
WingTips FastFlights offer an affordable per-seat option.
A WingTips FastFlight seat costs roughly $2.50 per seat/mile, making them cost-competitive with commercial flights (when they exist) and far more affordable than private jet charter costs. It’s not uncommon for charter flights to cost thousands of dollars for even short trips.
Priced at hundreds vs. thousands of dollars, WingTips FastFlights make private flying more accessible for everyday travelers.
This is where scale starts, a high-value service that is affordably priced for a larger percentage of the population.
WingTips has developed advanced technology.
WingTips’ intellectual property (IP) manages the entire customer experience from initial contact through the completion of a flight. The IP allows a traveler to request a flight that meets their travel needs, then the App refines the requirements while also determining the best way to group multiple travelers on a flight. For the traveler, they have a personalized flight but it’s shared with other passengers. Flights are professionally flown on business aircraft.
The WingTips experience.
Another area WingTips is unique is the traveler experience. When people are traveling, they wish the trip to be as short as possible.
When searching for lodging, you are selecting your residence for the period of your stay. It is about finding a place to stay where you’ll spend your time that meets your needs (size, location, amenities, and cost — be it modest to luxurious).
In contrast, WingTips is about getting you to your destination quickly, when there are limited options, usually driving.
When people are traveling, they wish the trip to be as short as possible. Once at the destination, the desire is to stay and enjoy. The speed advantage of WingTips increases the amount of time at the destination, an intangible yet fulfilling benefit.
And WingTips FastFlights are operated by professional air carriers, delivering a safe, fast, luxurious experience, a far better trip experience than what airlines provide.
The WingTips difference.
Our competitors do the same thing over and over…
Most only offer private charters that are too expensive.
Companies that do provide shared flights put all the financial risk on the client that originates the flight, then provide a rebate if other seats are sold. Not a fair approach.
Flights are operated like they were 50 years ago when private charter started, with a significant amount of waste that the clients end up paying for.
Offer only scheduled flights, not dynamic schedules, like WingTips.
Use general aviation aircraft (piston-powered, single-engine, four-seaters) that are not comfortable.
I have had conversations with executives at several aviation firms, where I offered up why their approaches don’t work for shared charter flights at scale. Yet, they dismissed it and said, “It should work, and it is easy to implement.”
Well, that’s the problem, easy doesn’t work for regional air travel!
There is a history of dead companies going back years that tried to provide a WingTips-like service and have not succeeded. DayJet, ImagineAir, and SATSair have tried to do an ‘easy’ new air travel service for short-regional flights — but all failed.
WingTips developed a business model that addresses all of these issues and scales, much like what Airbnb did by solving the “trust” issue for lodging.
The future of WingTips.
Today WingTips operates around $2.00-$3.00 per seat mile (equating to fares ranging as low as $250 for a 125-mile trip and as high as $900 for a 300-mile trip). Planned advances in software, operations, and aircraft will reduce fares while also increasing flight options. These changes will impact fares over the next two years, bringing the cost per seat mile under $2.00. Further out, we have solutions that will move the cost close to $1.00 per seat mile, about what it costs to drive yourself in a car.
The demand for WingTips is huge, estimated at $20B in a Georgia Tech Study and McKinsey Report on Regional Air Mobility. This is about 10% of the US airline market and is completely unserved for travelers that wish to fly.
WingTips took a First Principal look at the problem, and from there built the complexity in the software so the App is simple for users. Then we assembled a team that can execute the solutions needed to address the problem.
“You are building exactly what is needed to make regional air mobility work.”
— Cory Combs, Co-Founder, Ampaire
THE RESULT.
Kris was right. WingTips FastFlights is a new, easier, faster, convenient, and better way to travel. Whereas Airbnb is about ‘being there’, WingTips is about ‘getting there’.
Nothing in this article indicates a partnership, sponsorship, endorsement, relationship or agreement by Airbnb and WingTips.
WingTips is onto something big.
And you can be a part of it. Contact Mike to learn more about WingTips’ investment opportunities, or click here.