OpenAirplane

What OpenAirplane does

OpenAirplane was a Chicago-based, private online marketplace founded in 2012 that aimed to make renting a general aviation airplane as straightforward as renting a car. The platform enabled pilots and aviation enthusiasts to discover, book, and pay for aircraft across multiple operators and flight schools, addressing the fragmentation and friction inherent in the general aviation rental market. Its primary customer segment was individual general aviation pilots seeking access to aircraft for personal flying, training, travel, and recreational purposes.

The product was a horizontal booking and discovery platform aggregating aircraft inventory from disparate operators — functionally analogous to a consumer car-rental aggregator applied to aviation. No specific underlying technology, proprietary features, mobile applications, APIs, or SDKs are documented in the source data, and the platform did not evidence AI/ML, patents, or third-party integrations. The business model implied marketplace transaction economics (facilitating bookings between pilots and operators), but no pricing model, take rate, or revenue mechanics are disclosed in the available sources.

Capitalization was modest: the company raised two known rounds totaling $755,000 ($255K in July 2015 and $500K in February 2016, both with undisclosed investors), operated with 1-10 employees, and was led by co-founder and CTO Adam Fast. OpenAirplane officially ceased operations on December 29, 2019, with founders sharing post-mortem lessons via a Medium post titled 'Contact ground, point niner.'

Name

OpenAirplane

Website

https://openairplane.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

OpenAirplane was a Chicago-based online marketplace that enabled general aviation pilots to discover, book, and pay for aircraft rental across multiple operators. Founded in 2012, the platform served individual pilots seeking simplified access to fragmented aviation rental inventory before shutting down in December 2019.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aircraft Rental Marketplace

NAICS

Other Nonscheduled Air Transportation (481219)

SIC

Air Transportation, Nonscheduled (4522)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Aviation Brokerages & Trip Marketplace Platforms (THABAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Helicopter Passenger Services Brokerage, Booking & Aggregation Platforms (THABAGAJ)

Keywords

• Aircraft rental platform
• General aviation booking
• Airplane rental marketplace
• Pilot aircraft discovery
• Flight school access

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations

Core offering

OpenAirplane operated an online marketplace that let pilots discover, book, and pay for rentable aircraft across multiple general aviation operators and flight schools in a single interface. The platform applied a consumer car-rental aggregator model to general aviation, addressing the fragmented nature of aircraft rental where pilots historically had to manage separate relationships with each operator. The company ceased all operations on December 29, 2019.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OpenAirplane Aircraft Rental Platform Online marketplace that let individual pilots search for available rental aircraft across flight schools and aircraft operators, then book and pay for rentals through a unified web interface. Targeted at general aviation pilots needing on-demand access to airplanes for personal flying, training, travel, and recreation.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves3 records

Direct peers

• Victor: Victor is an on-demand private jet charter marketplace providing transparent booking and pricing across operators — directly comparable as a private aviation aggregator platform.
• Wingly: Wingly is a European flight-sharing marketplace that connects private pilots with passengers seeking to share flights, applying a similar two-sided marketplace model to GA aircraft access.
• Avinode: Avinode is a B2B charter management and booking platform connecting aircraft operators with brokers and charter customers — functionally comparable as an aviation marketplace/aggregation layer.
• Stratajet: Stratajet is an on-demand private jet booking marketplace with real-time pricing and empty-leg inventory — a comparable digital intermediary in the private aviation booking space.
• Blackbird: Blackbird operated a digital marketplace for private aircraft charter and rental in the U.S., closely mirroring OpenAirplane's aggregator thesis for GA and private aviation inventory.

Broad incumbents

• JSX: JSX (formerly JetSuiteX) operates a hop-on private jet / regional semi-private air service with online booking — a broader incumbent offering digital booking of private aviation capacity.
• Blade: Blade is a broader urban air mobility and private aviation booking platform offering scheduled and on-demand flights, seaplane and heli services — overlapping marketplace functionality at larger scale.
• JetSuite: JetSuite is an established private jet charter and semi-scheduled operator offering on-demand booking via its own fleet — an incumbent in the same private aviation booking category.

Emerging players

• FlyOnTime: FlyOnTime is a private aviation booking platform focused on simplifying access to charter and GA operators — an emerging player with partial overlap in the on-demand aircraft rental niche.

Others

• Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA): AOPA is the largest GA pilot association in the U.S., providing member services, advocacy and resources including rental/flight training tools — an ecosystem participant rather than a direct marketplace competitor.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OpenAirplane
• Facebookfacebook.com/OpenAirplane
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/openairplane

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about OpenAirplane