A mobile quoting and payment platform designed to “empower” charter operators and brokers was inaugurated at the show yesterday.
Tuvoli is a Boston-based business-to-business platform that allows users to buy, sell, pay and get paid for air charter. “The current system can be time consuming, confusing, opaque and costly,” says Tuvoli chief executive Greg Johnson.
Johnson cites the Federal wire banking system in the USA – a system that operates on a “Monday to Friday, 9-to-5 basis” which can be very inconvenient, he says. “Payment by credit card can also incur hefty fees”, Johnson adds, “and in an industry where the margins are already very low, this can be make the difference between a very small profit and a loss.” Tuvoli will charge a fee of less than 1% to the broker and the operator.
“This is a real-time payment system that people can trust, 24/7 and 365 days a year,” Johnson says.
Kenn Ricci, principal of Directional Aviation, which owns Tuvoli along with a host of aviation companies including aircraft brokers PrivateFly and Skyjet, says: “The entire industry is being held back by a lack of direct connectivity to each other, including the ability to pay and be paid any time at rates that make sense. Tuvoli pairs technology, modern methods of payment processing and charter industry intelligence on one clean platform to unlock growth potential for private aviation companies of all sizes."
Tuvoli says it has pre-loaded the jet aircraft in the US charter fleet onto its platform from data published by the Federal Aviation Administration.
“That means that for most charter companies, signing up is as simple as verifying their company and aircraft information,” says Johnson.
Brokers will go through a verification process that may include a request for references.
Once on the platform, operators will benefit immediately from free fleet flight tracking, Johnson adds. "Aircraft in your fleet are displayed on a US map that is updated in real-time".
“The platform has been on beta testing for 12 months, processing payments on over $25 million worth of charter demand,” Johnson says.
2019NBAA
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