Making private aviation more efficient, affordable and sustainable

Flowings: making private aviation more efficient, affordable and sustainable

Sharing economy now also reaches the luxury segment

The number of private jets worldwide has doubled compared to 20 years ago, and according to The Guardian’s recent report, last year more flights by private jets were flown than ever before and expresses concerns about the environmental impact. To make matters worse, in Europe alone, many of these luxury jets are flying without passengers, either to or from their destinations, depending on client needs and these flights are often known as empty-legs.  

Dutch company Flowings, wants to put an end to these empty-legs with its own platform, which displays the empty flights of all private jet providers worldwide. From a simple search, these flights can then be booked directly and at competitive rates. Flowings makes private flying more efficient, affordable and sustainable. 

The soft launch of Flowings will take place on 24 May during the EBACE aviation fair in Geneva.

Different, better and more profitable

Floris van den Ende from Rotterdam, the man behind Flowings was a commercial photo model and as such, flew around the world for years, later working at The Hague Airport, where he gained knowledge and experience in the airline industry. His love for aviation even led him into joining a flight academy, and he went to work for a private jet operator. While working there, he regularly saw aircraft leaving empty. He thought, that surely there had to be a way to do that differently, do it better and more profitable?  van den Ende shifted his focus, and his entrepreneurship started. Two years later, he is working - partly from Lisbon - with the help of investor, Jan Willem Broekhoven and a team of web developers and technicians to develop the booking platform Flowings.

Floris van den Ende, said: "It's obviously a shame that so many planes fly empty, when there are plenty of people who want to book such a jet at a competitive rate. Currently, a lot of money is just lying around; with Flowings, I bring supply and demand together. This makes private flying more efficient, which in turn leads to better sales. We are also doing our bit to make the aviation industry more sustainable this way."

Entrepreneur Jan Willem Broekhoven on his decision to invest in Flowings: "Personally, I am a big fan of the sharing economy and, like Floris, I have a soft spot for flying. His idea of filling empty private jets immediately appealed to me greatly for both reasons. Research shows that these ‘empty leg flights’ involve hundreds of millions, which is the gap Flowings jumps into. Aircraft can't stay at small airports, so they have to keep going, ideally with passengers on board. I always say ‘execution is 99% of success’, and seeing how adept and committed Floris is, gives me every confidence in Flowings' success. Flying is one of my greatest hobbies, for Floris it has now become business."