Surf Air: Difference between revisions
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In June 2017, Surf Air executive management led by Jeff Potter was fired, quit or managed out of the company. No new management team has been announced. At the same time, operations were transitioned to Encompass Air located in Santa Monica, California. |
In June 2017, Surf Air executive management led by Jeff Potter was fired, quit or managed out of the company. No new management team has been announced. At the same time, operations were transitioned to Encompass Air located in Santa Monica, California. |
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In June 2017, Surf Air acquired RISE adding six airports in Texas to its network. The new company will also expand service to Arkansas, Los Cabos and Las Vegas in the next 18 months. <ref>https://privatejetcardcomparisons.com/2017/06/07/surf-air-acquires-rise-expanding-into-texas/#more-4251</ref> |
In June 2017, Surf Air acquired RISE adding six airports in Texas to its network. The new company will also expand service to Arkansas, Los Cabos and Las Vegas in the next 18 months. <ref>https://privatejetcardcomparisons.com/2017/06/07/surf-air-acquires-rise-expanding-into-texas/#more-4251</ref> On June 23, 2017 Sur Air Europe operated its first flight from London's Luton Airport to Ibiza with an Embraer Phenom 300 <ref>https://privatejetcardcomparisons.com/2017/06/26/surf-air-makes-a-low-key-launch-in-europe/</ref> |
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== Fleet == |
== Fleet == |
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Revision as of 13:05, 27 June 2017
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| Founded | 2013 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | June 13, 2013 | ||||||
| Focus cities | |||||||
| Fleet size | 12 | ||||||
| Destinations | 11 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Santa Monica, California, USA | ||||||
| Key people |
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| Website | surfair | ||||||
Surf Air is a California-based airline that offers unlimited flights (billed as "all-you-can-fly") for a fixed monthly fee. It charges $1,950 per month plus a $1,000 signup fee.[1] The company uses single-engine turboprop Pilatus PC-12 aircraft.[2] Jeff Potter is the CEO.[3]
The airline's inaugural service in early 2013 offered West Coast flights between Silicon Valley (San Carlos Airport) and the Los Angeles area (Burbank Airport). It added Los Angeles area service to Santa Barbara Airport in July 2013[4][5] and Hawthorne Municipal Airport in December 2013. Truckee Airport, near Lake Tahoe, was added as a destination in May 2014[6] and flights to Carlsbad and Oakland, California began in late 2014.[7] Service to San Jose International Airport was added in April 2016.[8]
According to its website, as of January 2017, the company services the California cities of Burbank, Carlsbad, Hawthorne, Monterey, Oakland, Napa, Palm Springs, San Carlos, San Jose, Santa Barbara, and Truckee. Surf Air does not operate outside California, but arranges flights to Las Vegas (McCarran International Airport) from Hawthorne Municipal Airport through a FAA/DOT certificated air carrier.[9]
Surf Air is exploring service into the following California destinations: San Diego and Mammoth Lakes
Noise complaints
Residents from around San Francisco Bay Area have complained of excessive noise.[10][11] They have formed an group named Calm The Skies.[12] San Mateo County has acknowledged the noise issue caused by Surf Air. Part of their solution is to introduce an arrival procedure called "Bayside Visual Approach" that underwent testing in 2016.[13] A curfew has also been discussed in addition to other measures to mitigate the noise. [14][15]
Safety
An independent aviation safety consultant has voiced concerns regarding safety standards for Part 135 operators like Surf Air.[16]
History
The company was founded by David Eyerly, Wade Eyerly, Peter Bi, Scott Porter, Cory Cozzens and Reed Farnsworth. Surf Air emerged in 2012 from MuckerLab,[17] a Los Angeles-based business incubator.[5] Angel investors included Paige Craig, Aviv Grill and Bill Woodward. A Series A round of venture capital was completed in June 2013 with investment from Anthem Venture Partners, NEA, TriplePoint Capital, Siemer Ventures, Baroda Ventures, Gilad Elbaz, Eytan Elbaz, Rick Caruso, Jeffrey Stibel, Mike Walsh, and actor Jared Leto.[18][3] The company has raised at least $9 million from investors, including $500,000 from VegasTechFund (a venture capital fund launched by Tony Hsieh), Velos Partners, and Base Ventures.[19]
In August 2014, Surf Air raised $8 million in new equity funding and secured a $65 million loan to place a five-year order for 15 new Pilatus PC-12 planes, with an option to buy 50 more over that timespan.[20]
In February 2014, Wade Eyerly stepped down as CEO and was replaced by former Frontier Airlines CEO Jeff Potter. At the time, the company had about 430 members.[3] Wade Eyerly, Cory Cozzens and Reed Farnsworth formed Beacon Air in 2015[21] but shut it down in 2016.[22]
The city of Atherton, California, has complained to the Federal Aviation Administration about noise from the planes flying at low altitude near San Carlos Airport. Pending regulatory approval, Surf Air has reportedly agreed to a different flight path at higher altitude over populated areas near Atherton, Menlo Park, and North Fair Oaks, and has agreed to deploy landing gear closer to the airport.[23]
Surf Air announced the sale of its 2,000th membership in September 2015, 2,500th in December 2015 and 3,000th in June 2016.[24] [25] [26]
In May 2016, Surf Air received 2 additional aircraft phasing out their older legacy PC-12s. [27]
In June 2017, Surf Air executive management led by Jeff Potter was fired, quit or managed out of the company. No new management team has been announced. At the same time, operations were transitioned to Encompass Air located in Santa Monica, California.
In June 2017, Surf Air acquired RISE adding six airports in Texas to its network. The new company will also expand service to Arkansas, Los Cabos and Las Vegas in the next 18 months. [28] On June 23, 2017 Sur Air Europe operated its first flight from London's Luton Airport to Ibiza with an Embraer Phenom 300 [29]
Fleet
As of June 2016, the Surf Air fleet consists of the following aircraft:
| Aircraft | Active | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilatus PC-12 NG | 12 | 15+50[30] | 8 | N809SA, N816SA, N817SA, N819SA, N821SA, N824SA, N828SA, N829SA, N849SA, N850SA, N853SA, N874SA
Orders are NG version, 15 orders and 50 options. |
References
- ^ "Surf Air How It Works". Surf Air. Retrieved Jan 12, 2015.
- ^ "Surf Air:In-Flight Experience". Surf Air. Retrieved June 15, 2013.
- ^ a b c Ryan Lawler (February 27, 2014). "Surf Air Founder Wade Eyerly Steps Down, Replaced By Former Frontier Airlines CEO Jeff Potter". TechCrunch. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ Samantha Grossman (June 17, 2013). "Flat-Rate Flying: Introducing Surf Air, the All-You-Can-Fly Airline". Time.com. Retrieved July 7, 2013.
- ^ a b Natalie Jarvey (2013-07-10). "Surf Air Takes Off for Santa Barbara | Los Angeles Business Journal". Labusinessjournal.com. Retrieved 2013-08-05.
- ^ "Surf Air expands flight service to Truckee | TahoeDailyTribune.com". Tahoe Daily Tribune. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
- ^ "Surf Air Expands Service to Carlsbad and Oakland with Delivery of New Pilatus PC-12NG Aircraft | Business Wire". www.businesswire.com. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
- ^ "Surf Air expands flight service to San Jose | SurfAir.com". Surf Air Blog. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
- ^ "Surf Air Destinations:Las Vegas". Surf Air. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "Calm the Skies mounts protest against Surf Air at San Carlos Airport". The Mercury News. June 21, 2017.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Protesters at San Carlos Airport complain of Surf Air noise". The Almanac. June 18, 2017.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Calm The Skies". Calm The Skies Organization.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Federal Aviation Administration approves Surf Air route to take planes over Bay". Palo Alto Online. June 23, 2017.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Board of Supervisors to Consider Noise Abatement Solutions at San Carlos Airport | County Manager's Office". cmo.smcgov.org. Retrieved 2017-06-25.
- ^ "County may put lid on 'noisy aircraft' at San Carlos Airport". The Almanac.
{{cite web}}:|archive-date=requires|archive-url=(help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ Goglia, John (August 6, 2013). John Goglia "Surf Air 'Airline'? What Passengers Need To Know Before They Sign-Up". Forbes.
{{cite web}}: Check|url=value (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ Billy Witz (August 5, 2013). "All-You-Can-Fly Airline Plies the California Coast". New York Times. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ Sarah Perez (June 6, 2013). "Members-Only Airline Surf Air Raises Series A From Anthem, NEA & Others (Including Jared Leto)". TechCrunch. Retrieved July 24, 2013.
- ^ Dean Takahashi (November 12, 2013). "Surf Air aims to disrupt the big airlines with an executive membership service". VentureBeat. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ "'All-You-Can-Fly' Surf Air gets $73 million for more planes & destinations". Built In Los Angeles. Retrieved 2016-02-15.
- ^ Sarah Buhr (Feb 10, 2015). "Surf Air Founders Jet To The East Coast With New Private Flight Service Beacon". TechCrunch. Retrieved Oct 29, 2015.
- ^ Lora Kolodny (Apr 14, 2016). "Beacon, the all-you-can-fly travel startup, closes shop". TechCrunch. Retrieved Apr 18, 2016.
- ^ Barbara Wood (May 27, 2014). "Atherton urges Surf Air to fly at higher altitudes". The Almanac. Retrieved June 8, 2014.
- ^ http://www.socaltech.com/surf_air_____members_8_daily_flights/s-0063353.html
- ^ "Surf Air reaches 2,000 member milestone". BusinessWire. September 10, 2015.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ http://www.businessinsider.com/surf-air-members-book-unlimited-flights-for-a-monthly-fee-2016-7
- ^ "A Prop(er) Goodbye". Surf Air. May 20, 2016.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ https://privatejetcardcomparisons.com/2017/06/07/surf-air-acquires-rise-expanding-into-texas/#more-4251
- ^ https://privatejetcardcomparisons.com/2017/06/26/surf-air-makes-a-low-key-launch-in-europe/
- ^ "California's Surf Air orders 15+50 Pilatus PC-12NGs". ch-aviation.com. Retrieved 2014-08-12.
External links
