Plane Conversations

Over the years we have seen more and more travel aggregators come into the online marketplace. Now you can go to dozens of different websites to find the lowest possible price for your next trip. As an industry, we have subsequently seen prices going lower as the airlines fight to the bottom to fight for market share. This does not drive down the cost of operation for flying the aircraft, it just lowers the consumer perception of what travel is worth.

(via http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/11/29/prweb8985424.DTL) Superfly, a technology startup at the forefront of travel innovation, today announced its new smart flight search engine. Superfly’s engine is a unique online platform that personalizes flight search by adding an individual’s data — frequent flyer miles, elite statuses, rewards programs and individual preferences — into the decision-making process of choosing a flight. For the first time, travelers can fully take advantage of their frequent flyer miles and rewards programs when booking travel online.

“Today’s mainstream flight search websites completely ignore the impact of consumer data,” said Jonathan Meiri, CEO of Superfly. “This is a defining issue for the future of online travel services. Superfly is a secure tool that not only has access to all the flights in the world, it also combines that information with personal travel preferences in order to help consumers figure out which flight is right for them.”

Google’s recent acquisition of ITA Software has marked the dawn of a new age in online travel. Many industry players are now using the same travel data, essentially turning flight search into a commodity. This will most likely unleash a wave of innovation as incumbents look to differentiate their services.

“Superfly is an incredible tool that will bring great value to travelers, particularly frequent flyers,” said Kenneth Esterow, an advisor of Superfly and former CEO of GTA by Travelport. “It is particularly useful to heavy users and corporate travelers.”

Superfly enables consumers to maximize the value of their miles and make better travel decisions. Rather than focusing solely on presenting the cheapest flight, Superfly helps individual consumers identify the options with the greatest personal value. Travelers can use Superfly’s personal travel insights to better manage their rewards programs and cash-in on the opportunities they present.

When all you focus on when you are looking for a service is price, everyone will lose. Value is a much more sustainable model and can lead to more growth and innovation. All of us here at Social Flights support the efforts of companies like Superfly and look forward to leading the charge with them into an innovative and prosperous age of travel.

There’s an old song from the World War II generation that says, “Wishing will make it so…”.  Buddy DeSylva’s lyrics speak of hope, optimism, and belief.  Yet wishing can’t give you more hours in a day, or more productivity while travelling, or access to places difficult to reach.

Flying can make it so.

That being said, we need to tell our stories, ways that aviation assists us daily in carrying on our various activities and work.  This is partially because we gain strength and synergy when we see that there are others much like us who know and understand the real benefit of flying.  This doesn’t have to be a $20million dollar corporate jet.  It can be as simple as a Diamond DA-40.  It’s the story of the DA-40 that I want to pass on to you today.

Last week our company’s CEO, VP of Sales, and I took a DA-40 to visit a customer in Jonesboro, AR.  We then had a pop-up visit with a lead in Little Rock, AR.  We then lunched in Tunica, MS on our way home (no gambling, just food) and returned home in time for a local Chamber event in our hangar.

The plane, by business aircraft  norms, was really modest.  In fact, a LearJet pilot teased me as I preflighted my plane parked next to his.  The only refreshments were in the small cooler I packed with green tea, water, and peanut butter crackers on my way to the airport that morning.   The only in-flight entertainment was an iPad.   And the air conditioning?  On this 97+ degree day, it was inoperative.  So we climbed until we felt comfortable at 60 or so degrees at 7,000 feet.

And yet, even in this basic small aircraft we were able to condense over 14 hours of drive time into 6.2 flight hours.  Had we driven we would have certainly been out overnight in order to drive and have time for our meetings.  And while it was a long day, it was an easy day.  So we made our rounds, saw our clients, and returned before dark.

Yes, aircraft are fun.  Some aircraft are luxurious.  Some aircraft are expensive and some are not.  But for the businesses that operate them, they are tools.  Their value in time savings and multiplied productivity is astonishing.

Flying can make it so.

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Social Marketing has revolutionized business.  The ability to reach, communicate, and build relationships with customers has never been more accessible (at little or no cost) than it is today.  Far from a “flash in the pan” gimmick, social media marketing using tools such as Twitter and Facebook are here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future or until the next generation of marketing emerges.  The company that engages in intentional social media marketing is vastly extending its reach and its potential client base.

Today consumers research and engage businesses online long before they click “Order” on a product or darken the door of a business.  A 2009 study by Pew Research showed that people with higher income and/or education levels were the most likely to research online –87% of college graduates and 88% of those earning more than $75,000.1  This demographic is very much in line with the income and educational levels of those likely to involve themselves in flight training and other aviation related products and services.   Specifically in regards to social media, the same Pew study demonstrated that nearly half of Americans use social media sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn.2   Additionally , a recent Nielson survey reported in Entreprenuer magazine found that almost of quarter of consumer’s online time is spent on social networks.3

If our goal is to raise visibility and awareness of our products and services, then it follows that social media should not be neglected.  Simply put, if we want to be where the customers are and then we should be in the social media marketplace.

Are you ready to engage?

1.  http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=136747

2.  Ibid, mediapost.com #1

3.  “Baking, Listening & Selling” Entrepreneur Magazine, February 2011, page 61

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So often we allow ourselves to get bogged down by our own thoughts and habits.  Year-end reflections remind us that there are things we should stop doing and that there are valid reasons for changing our behavior.  I think that today I’ll avoid dwelling on those thoughts that mire down my thinking and, instead, focus on a vision of the value that change can bring.

Checking the clock for the tenth time, she sees the hands creeping towards midnight.  In the nearly abandoned library, a college freshman furiously scratches out the last half-page of her calculus homework thinking, “Maybe I’m not cut out for this.”  A vibrating alert signals a message.  Opening her phone, she scrolls through a list of updates (hmm…that party is looking more inviting); but, the newest message, marked with an airplane icon, simply reads, “Thought you’d like this story.” The link is from Mike, her study partner in aero class.  She clicks on the link to discover that it’s a first-hand account of the first flight of the X-99 including a video of the landing.  She dives back into her assignment with a determined smile…Inspire.

Late one Friday afternoon, a test pilot looks at the test cards for a new commercial aircraft terrain avoidance system.  This is the third weekend in a row that he’s had to work late.  The cutbacks are wearing him down.  Something stirs in his mind, a distant memory of another test program—F-16 advanced ground collision avoidance testing.  Something in that distant memory tickles his mind.  What was it?! He opens his laptop, opens Google Reader, enters search terms; and, there it is – a blog shared by his chief test pilot detailing the test program.  Returning to the current test, he realizes that this altitude isn’t high enough. An FTT performed at that speed and dive angle will almost certainly be unrecoverable.  He knows that delaying tomorrow’s flight won’t be popular, but the test team needs to see this error and that article…Inform.

Rubbing his temples, a college provost reviews the budget…again.  Asking himself which of these programs he will have to cut, one line-item catches his eye.  “How much money does it take to fund a flight research laboratory?” he wonders.  Delaying his decision until after dinner, he goes home to be greeted by his son, excitedly telling him about the newest YouTube video.

            “Watch this dad! A spinning airplane deploys this chute and recovers safely.” The narrator said that the flight test was a joint project between that test pilot school and his university.

            “That’s your work, isn’t it dad?” An email address hyperlink next to the video catches his eye.  Maybe that aero department is worth the money after all…Invest.

Sharing what we do in flight test allows us to inspire, inform, invest, and even innovate. Social media can transform the way we share, multiplying the speed and breadth of our influence on the important people, from students to policy-makers, we want to touch with our message.  After all, one of them might just be the next Chuck Yeager.

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It has been a couple weeks since I last posted on Plane Conversations.

I usually don’t go this long without checking in but the past few weeks of travel to China, and then being part of a conference back in TN, have kept me running with little time to slow down and write.

This week I was part of a conference hosted by Middle Tennessee State University and sponsored by our company and FedEx.

The purpose of the conference was to get people together from China and the US who work in the government and private sectors of aviation to dialogue and exchange knowledge on the developments and trends in General Aviation in China.

From China we had a delegation that consisted of officials from CAAC (China’s FAA), legal scholars from the Beihang University of Aerospace and Aeronautics, industry executives from Flying Dragon Aviation China, the largest general aviation company in China, as well as China’s official news agency Xinhua. Erick Wang, CFM’s VP of our newly formed CFM China Company, was also in attendance. Erick is from Harbin, in Heilongjiang Province, Northern China.

From the US side, attendees included senior level FAA/ATC, AOPA’s International Affairs Director, representatives from FedEx’s international legal affairs and international feeder operations, MTSU aerospace professors, Chuck Howell, CEO of Great Lakes Airlines, executives from BAE Systems and Cirrus Design.

Mike Vaughn who is President of CFM China and Director of Government Sales for CFM here in the US was the conference moderator.  

This is my first experience with co-hosting and sponsoring a conference of this magnitude and I now have a new found respect for those who organize these type events. Hundreds of hours and months of planning and preparation go into an event like this, especially when trying to coordinate schedules, logistics and visas for delegates coming from the other side of the world.

Many thanks to the Aerospace Department at MTSU for hosting this conference at their facilities at the Murfreesboro Airport, and thanks to FedEx for being the major sponsor.  

My post conference impressions about what was learned and gained center around relationship building.

Nothing replaces face to face dialogue and some of the more important interactions happened, not at the speaker’s podium, but at the dinners and social times when conversations between the Chinese and US delegates was relaxed and informal in nature.

Our new aviation friends from China are no different than aviators here in the US. They are passionate and knowledgeable about their profession and have a sincere desire to learn. Aviators around the world share a common bond that trumps any cultural or political differences.  

The Chinese are very intent on growing their industry in China. They have been restrained by restrictions on use of airspace by the PLA, but nonetheless they know what they are doing.

The Chinese recognize that they need to open up their airspace for commercial activity including GA. Their government now recognizes that a healthy general aviation industry is good for economic development and prosperity in China. The country and the government are massive and opening the skies will not happen overnight, but it will happen. Before laws are enacted, policies and procedures will be put into place to allow more GA operations in the skies.  

The Chinese also recognize that the US has one of the most developed and successful aviation systems in the world and there is much to be gained by learning from both the successes and mistakes of our long history in aviation. They have a unique opportunity to leapfrog many of the inefficient systems we have and go straight to the best practices and advanced technology of today and the future.

GA in China today is small relative to the country’s economy, geography and population, so it will not take much to steer the industry quickly into a world class player.

China has done it in many other areas of their economy, first in manufacturing, now in technology and communications, and in the past two decades in the airline industry. Once the ball gets rolling in general aviation it will be fascinating to see how it develops. In my lifetime I may get to see China surpass the US in GA activity.  

The US, Brazil and Europe, with advanced GA aircraft design and manufacturing capability, expertise in operating and maintaining GA aircraft, and capabilities in training pilots, mechanics, and operations management, stand to gain in a big way as China’s GA takes off.

I believe those in the US who are willing to look at the long term, and develop relationships now, will see the payoff in 5-10 years when the door opens wider.

One of the senior delegates from China conveyed to me words of wisdom that relationships, trust and friendships must be developed first and business will naturally follow. That sounds very much like the way the US used to do business before we got in a hurry to make a quick dollar. I personally enjoy this way of doing business because it is more than just today’s profit that counts. The personal relationships come first.  

I have new found friends from China that I believe will be friends for life.   

We will write more about this conference in future blogs and an official press release.    

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09/24/10

It’s Friday Down Under - the last day of our General Aviation flying adventure.  The nearly one hour drive from mid-town Sydney to Bankstown Airport gave us plenty of time to discuss today’s mission.  Unlike other mornings, this day began with a crisp, blue sky and light winds.  And, with a high pressure system keeping all clouds away, we were really pumped up for the flight.

Tim chose to fly a reversal of our previous flight.  This time, we toured Sydney first, before heading off to the south for some low level (500 foot) coastal flying.  We finished up with a trip inland towards the Blue Mountains and the gorgeous views the ravine flying provided.

Today, Bankstown Airport seemed to be as busy as Atlanta’s Peachtree DeKalb Airport.  There are three parallel runways at Bankstown and all three were in use. We were number five for take-off on Runway 29 Right or just the “Right” as they say here.  We heard the new call from the tower of “Line Up and Wait” just as we called “ready” at the Holding Point, or the Hold Line, as we say in the States.  Almost immediately, we were cleared for take-off directly behind a older Cessna 172 which was lifting off.  The Cessna planned to depart in the same direction that we did; so, since the SR22 is quite a bit faster than the 172, Tim had to make allowances to keep clear of the aircraft before overtaking it.  Off the ground, we overtook the 172 even before exiting the Class D airspace and beginning to look for our visual ground reference points. 

Within ten minutes, we were over the Pacific at 1,500 feet awaiting our clearance into Sydney Harbor, which came right as planned.  (We had filed a VFR flight plan before departure to let them know we were coming.) Inbound on the Harbor Scenic One, we were advised to watch out for an Airbus 380 that had just departed towards our direction.  We picked it up visually at about ten miles - quite a distance, but at 747 big, the Airbus isn’t hard to see.

Making our two orbits over the harbor, we departed back towards the coast and were cleared for our low level coastal flying.  We flew down past Botany Bay and Jibbon Point before heading on to Seacliff Bridge.  This time we saw no whales, but the views were still magnificent.

Maintaining a listening watch on Sydney Radar 124.55 and with a right climbing turn, we now headed west towards Lake Burragorang that sits surrounded by the painted canyons of the Blue Mountains. We crossed the ridge on the south side of Lake Burragorang, then dropped below the ridge line and flew up the lake.  The only hazard we had to watch for was a power line draped over the north end.  We saw absolutely no one on the lake and no signs of any development at all.  Talk about getting away from it all…we were there!  We agreed that today was the best flying day of the trip.

Turning towards home, Bankstown, the pattern was just as busy as as it had been when we left an hour and a half earlier.  It sure was comforting to have the Cirrus Skywatch Traffic system alerting us to other aircraft. Tim used this to pick up the closest threats before slowing to blend in with the other approaching traffic.  We were number four for landing!

As we rolled out on final, the controller cleared us for the Center runway and that was that.  Tim greased the landing and taxied us back to Regal Air to say our good-byes and to give our our thanks to our new friends and to the aircraft that gave us such incredible views of Oz.

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09/20/10

G’Day!  We were supposed to fly into Melbourne, but as is the case in all flying, sometimes the weather just doesn’t cooperate.  Melbourne’s weather was gusty with cold winds and low ceilings; so, we chose to bypass that part of the journey and remain in Sydney…perhaps another time.  Sunday, we let the SR22 rest and I did some sight seeing with the family.  

But on Monday I went out to the Bankstown Airport.  I traveled via the train and bus system since a taxi would have cost more than $100 each way and would still taken 40-50 minutes. I had a multi-day rail/bus/water taxi pass for $54; so, I tried it out and with some help of the locals (remember I had passed the English proficiency exam).  The bus dropped me off just at the street’s edge of the airport with just a short walk to Regal Air.

Backpack loaded, I strolled into the hangar where I met Peter Edwards the owner and director.  Regal Air is a Cirrus Maintenance Facility and another first class organization with an extremely skilled staff.  Peter and I discussed the routing that would provide a great tour of the city and surrounding area.  There’s a special route that, with ATC permission, takes you almost overhead of the famed Opera House and Sydney Bridge.  To get this permission, we had to file a VFR flight plan requesting the Harbor Scenic 1.

Peter and I did a thorough pre-flight on our SR22 that now had 14 hours.  This was only the second Perspective equipped model he’d seen and I offered up the left seat.  I think that he can fly anything with wings!  After a brief training session on the Perspective (especially the radios), we were off climbing to 1000 feet within the Class D airspace then on to 2000 as we headed further north.  The clouds prevented us from climbing much higher.

Automatically, we switched our transponder from 3000 to 1200 and soon thereafter contacted Sydney Radar for clearance into the filed route.  We were given another visual checkpoint to report (I’ve never done so much reporting of visual checkpoints in all my years of flying, by the way).  Once there, we were cleared for the air tour.  We made two circuits inside the harbor before we departed back to the north for some serious coastal flying .

Flying coastal is just that….flying along the coast line.  Today we flew at 500 feet, past all the famous beaches and across the approach end of Sydney International.  The airport wasn’t busy at the time; so, no worries about traffic.

Coastal flying over, we flew again to a visual arrival route checkpoint for the trip back to the Bankstown Airport.

Peter gave me invaluable instruction and served as a superior tour guide while in the air.  All that should help when Tim and the rest arrive into Sydney and want to do some Cirrus flying. Tim and crew arrived today for his concert tonight.  After that I expect we’ll have some good stories to tell of his flying adventures.  Cheers!

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09/18/10

We departed Brisbane today -  Tim in his chartered jet, me and my family in the beautiful Cirrus.  Aircraft payloads are limited not only by weight, but also by mass.  And that was the one thing I forgot to plan on.  We have luggage for two weeks of travel – three of the bags are oversized.  But, as they say in Australia, “No worries.”  The SR22 rear seats fold down; so, with one seat folded, we were able to pack it all in and still have room for my daughter….she was pleased.

My days of study and preparation were put to the test as I filed my first Aussie IFR flight plan.  In Australia, the pilot has to contact the radar controller to get an IFR code prior to taxiing if you plan on departing in visual conditions and then getting your IFR clearance - sort of like a composite flight plan in the US.  We began the flight in visual conditions and activated our IFR portion about two hours later.  The controllers were most helpful all along the way.

As we departed Archerfield visually, I explained to Brisbane Radar that I wanted to first fly a coastal route north to look for whales and then turn south for a coastal routing past my third waypoint before picking up my IFR flight plan.  She merely said, “You can expect that.”

Off to the north we went at 1000 feet and, sure enough, we flew over more whales on their migration. We then turned south towards the Gold Coast and onwards.  The regional controllers advised us regarding traffic along the way, pretty much like they do in the US.  The further south we went, the more the wind picked up and the turbulent the air became (south westerly winds here are like the cold north westerly winds back home). At that point, I activated the IFR portion of our flight plan and climbed to 5000 feet.  After confirming our route, it was pretty routine flying except that in the US we get a full route clearance. In Australia, every controller I was handed off to on the radio confirmed only the routing within his/her sector.  I had to read that back each time.  

I am very glad that I had studied the VFR arrival procedures into Bankstown.  They expect you to fly a visual approach if the weather is VMC and, unless you request an instrument approach well ahead of time, you might find yourself holding for a long time until you get an approach clearance.  Again, the Enroute Supplement was extremely valuable in describing the visual checkpoints, as was the Visual Terminal Chart for Sydney.  ATC likes for you to fly canned arrivals - no GPS direct stuff here!  So, I came in knowing the reporting points and was able to fly directly to Runway 11L. Oh and another thing, when they have parallel runways operating, they just tell you cleared to land on the left…no numbers.

The only things that I wish were better here are the taxiway markings.  For the most part they are non-existent.  When I landed at Bankstown and requested assistance finding the FBO here, the controller didn’t know how to instruct me to get there.  I had it marked on my airport diagram; but, since there were no taxiway markings, I was a bit unsure.  One of the security trucks was listening on the radio and he gave me some directions.  All in all it was a great flight with unbelievable coastal flying (sometimes as low as 500 feet!) followed by an uneventful IFR portion into Sydney. 

Monday, I head back to the airport to fly with some of the locals to get the best sight-seeing routes of the Sydney area.  Until then, Cheers!

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Business aviation has taken a beating in the past two years.  While we are now seeing some signs of recovery, we must remember that those signs do not constitute prosperity. We can blame industry difficulties on the government or on the economy, but the reality is that we need to quit following the old business models. In many areas, we are doing things today just as we have for the past 30 years.

If we look to the technology sector of our economy as a possible success story to emulate, we see a constant flow of innovation in the market. Computing technology gets not only faster and more productive by the day, but it also gets cheaper. Social Technology has taken on a life of its own with changes happening faster than even the social media gurus can keep up with.

Those of us in aviation know that we cannot change or innovate as fast as the technology sector of this economy. Or can we?

When it comes to the aircraft design and regulation compliance that make our industry safer, admittedly we cannot go any faster than the government allows. New aircraft designs are also limited by the allocation of capital and have long cycles from initial investment to development to payoff. The tech sector can crank out new smart phones every six months, but we can’t just crank out new jets that fast.

Aircraft design and safety compliance timing may be out of our control, but that should not stop us from innovating.

Innovation starts with conversations. Doc Searls coined the term “the market is conversations” in his 1999 book The Cluetrain Manifesto.  With consumers self-aggregating and expressing intentions online, why can’t we engage in the conversations and meet those intentions?

We need to expand our market by engaging the larger audience of travelers in conversations about the value proposition of business aviation and even leisure travel by private aircraft. It starts online these days and ultimately moves to face-to-face contact.

We also need to challenge our market and our industry to start conversations on how to deliver business aviation at a reduced cost. The solutions must come from the entire supply chain, with everyone involved in business aviation as a part of the solution.

I have yet to hear anyone say they would like to go back to riding on the airlines after experiencing travel on a private aircraft.  What I have heard, hundreds of times, is that they can’t afford what we offer; so, they grudgingly go back for more of the misery of air travel by mass transit.

What are we going to do about it?

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Back in January, we talked about some of the reasons that airlines oversell flights.  The biggest one is no-show factor - the number of ticketed passengers who neither cancel their reservations nor appear for their flights.  No-show factors exist in all markets and are quite high in some; so, airlines oversell flights in an effort to reduce lost revenue.

By definition, when airlines oversell flights they sell the same seat twice.  Clearly, promising the same discrete product to two different purchasers could be seen as unethical and, in some instances, fraudulent.  If I sell one piece of land to two different parties, I’ve defrauded one of them; however, airline seats are less like real estate and more like dental appointments.  Let’s say your dentist has enough time to see 16 patients in a day.  If Patient #3 doesn’t show up for his appointment and no other patients are available to fill the slot, then that appointment time goes empty.  The dentist cannot insert today’s wasted 30 minutes into tomorrow.  Since Patient#3 neither cancelled nor appeared, he will be charged a no-show fee.  This compensates the doctor for her time, rather than allowing the productivity and revenue to be lost.

Likewise, if 120 passengers buy tickets for today’s 12:30 departure on flight BR549, and if 30 of those passengers fail to show up, the airline cannot take those 30 seats and use them on another flight.  If they go out empty, the airline loses that revenue.  Passengers may pay a fee and use their tickets on other flights, regardless of their no-show status.  In effect, the passenger has paid for a single seat on a single flight and has used a single seat on two flights.  Unlike the dentist, the airline does not charge the no-show passenger for their unused seat, although several years ago, there were a few airlines that had a Use-It-Or-Lose-It policy.  The policy went over badly with consumers and was abandoned.

Currently, airlines solicit passengers for volunteers to give up their seats.  If there are no volunteers, someone will be denied boarding involuntarily.  If several conditions are met, those passengers are eligible for compensation between $400 and $800.  Passenger-rights groups have pushed the Transportation Department to raise that compensation range to between $800 and $1,200, payable by cash or check – no travel vouchers, please.  So, now.  Riddle me this.  If I don’t have a seat assignment (leaving me more likely to be bumped) and the gate agent asks me to give up my seat for a $500 travel voucher, how likely am I to volunteer if I can hold out and get up to $1,200 in cash?  I’m going to have to go with “Not very.”  Gate agents are going to love this.

In general, I believe that our current air mass-transit system is ridiculously broken and in need of an enormous overhaul that only economic Darwinism can accomplish; however, in this case, the carriers are in a Catch-22 – they lose money if the seats go empty and they lose it if they take involuntary oversales.  How can they hope to break even in that circumstance?  They could levy much larger ticket change fees or they could determine annual losses in whichever category they decide to follow and amortize those losses over annual ticket sales.  The second solution sounds like one that would appeal more to carriers since they would stand to collect on every single ticket sold rather than just on those changed.  If they chose this solution, passenger-rights groups will have succeeded in making every single traveler pay for empty seats of no-shows.

Regardless of the solution, this is not a safety related issue.  Why is the government, with its nearly $1.2 trillion deficit, presuming to govern the business practices of publicly held airlines?  Doesn’t this constant meddling just prolong the lives of terminally ill business practices and the companies who refuse to change them?  Doesn’t preserving the status quo in such a way actually stifle growth and innovation?

Allowing huge airlines to fold under the weight of their own poor decisions would have enormous economic repercussions, we all know that.  However, without pruning the dead vines, how do we expect the industry to truly grow?

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