Aviation services group Gozen is significantly expanding its horizons as a specialist software provider with the acquisition of Boeing’s Jeppesen Operator/OpsMan product line. The agreement, announced by its Gozen Digital Aviation (GDA) division this week at EBACE 2022, adds to the Turkish company’s comprehensive aircraft operations management tool developed specifically around the needs of business aviation.
The deal, the terms of which were not disclosed, is an unusual instance of Boeing selling software to a third party. It also marks a significant step for the new digital aviation unit of parent company Gozen, which also includes the Gozen Air Services flight support division.
While GDA was established only a year ago, Gozen has more than 26 years of experience developing software in-house to support a variety of aviation functions. According to Sevket Numanoglu, GDA's CEO and Gozen Holding's chief technology officer, what sets the company apart is its strong pedigree in supporting aircraft operations. That means it can offer expert backup to clients using Operator and other platforms it will offer, he added.
“It’s not enough just to offer software as a service. Customers need a true end-to-end solution based on the domain knowledge we have from years of experience in aviation,” Numanoglu told AIN. He said GDA will provide customers with what he called a "white glove" 24/7 service that could include Gozen staff taking on some tasks if needed.
According to Jeppesen, the web-based Operator system combines multiple flight operations management tools in one platform and can be scaled according to the size of an operation. Its functions include aircraft and crew scheduling, trip planning, vendor requests, business intelligence data, weather, and notam information. Flight crew can use the Cloud-based software on the road using the accompanying Personal Assistant app.
Over the next few months, GDA will be transitioning its management of the platform with support from Boeing. Numanoglu said that Gozen’s growing team of software developers will be introducing further improvements to it.
“We have a big flight-dispatch and trip-planning organization, with a worldwide presence in the market,” he explained. “This product has a very big future and Gozen will be able to make more of it with an even stronger customer focus.”
Gozen (Booth Y73) also offers software covering functions such as ground handling, security, and finance. “We will make sure the product line remains on the competitive vanguard and meticulously creates added value for its users.”
The group’s platforms already include the Simorg software for managing flight training centers, which has been on the market since 2018. Earlier this month, GDA announced that Miami-based Paramount Aviation Services will be the first to adopt the software. Paramount will also distribute the software in the Americas.
GDA has more than 80 multilingual employees with aviation backgrounds and is set to recruit more to support a customer base that already extends across 42 locations in 16 countries. The wider Gozen group, which has been active in business aviation since its foundation 43 years ago, has 3,100 employees and some 350 customers worldwide. Its activities also include FBOs, aircraft refueling, security, and airline handling subsidiaries, as well as charter airline Freebird.
“We know Operator and OpsManager are in good hands with Gozen Digital Aviation,” said Brett Burgess, chief product officer for Digital Aviation Solutions at Boeing Global Services. “Both of our companies have a proud history of serving the business and general aviation market, and we look forward to working together on a seamless transition for customers.”