Vancouver startup KinectAir has launched its service with the first bookings now available for on-demand air travel.
The company was unveiled in 2019 with plans to build out software to provide an on-demand network for travelers to book flights on private aircraft and for aircraft owners to get more use of their assets.
To start, the company is booking flights in the Pacific Northwest out of smaller airports like Bend or Hillsboro or the San Juan Islands. There is one aircraft on the network and three pilots, said co-founder and CEO Jonathan Evans.
Two more aircraft are expected in the near term and by the end of the year, the company hopes to have nine aircraft in the system. Each aircraft needs two pilots to keep coverage, he said. To start, the company wants to saturate coverage in the Pacific Northwest.
The company is in the process of getting FAA certified to be a charter carrier but is now working with the certified carrier Direct2Air to maintain and manage aircraft, said Evans. The first aircraft in the system is a Bend-based Diamond DA 62.
The company built a multi-pronged marketplace to connect travelers, aircraft and pilots. It also had its first paying flights this month, said Evans. Eventually the company will have an smartphone app for fast booking, but to get started the company has a web app to take traveler information. A quote and booking are sent as a follow-up email from a personal concierge.
A quote from Portland to Seattle over a long weekend in July came in at $2,750 for four adults or about $687 a seat. Evans notes that this method of travel bypasses commercial airlines and the typical airport experience.
“This is the notion of flying in your own aircraft as opposed to renting a seat on one,” said Evans, who is also a pilot. “It’s a joyful way to experience mobility.”
As flights are booked the company can alert users for open seats and discounted rates to fill flights and back hauls. Evans noted the company is building the early community of users.
A target customer is someone who, if they flew commercial, would book a seat at the front of the plane, said Evans. He estimates the target is someone who makes $180,000 annually.
“They can afford to fly on us six to seven times a year based on how they spend money and the time value,” he said, adding that KinectAir can take someone from Portland or Hillsboro to Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands in 45 minutes instead of a five-hour drive.
“I can see competing and making a new market to people who fly at the front of an airplane today. There is nothing between first class and (owning) a private jet,” he said.
For now, the company is using aircraft owned by single owners, but eventually it plans to offer a way for people to have fractional ownership of aircraft that are in the fleet.
To date the company, which has a team of eight, has raised $2.5 million from investors. Its lead investor is Andy Tung, who also sits on the board of Cathay Pacific Airways and is former CEO of Hong Kong-based Orient Overseas Container Lines.
Evans expects to raise another round to support the company’s go-to-market push and scaling.
