Story ID: 
Directional Aviation Launches New Charter Platform
By: Chad Trautvetter
Caption: Directional Aviation's new Tuvoli digital charter platform aims to allow air charter brokers and operators to do business together more seamlessly.
Word Count: 353
Directional Aviation today launched an open-technology platform for the business aviation industry—dubbed Tuvoli, Italian for “you fly.” The program allows air charter brokers and operators to make aircraft available to the market, source aircraft, provide quotes, confirm and amend trips, arrange support services, and facilitate instant payment between parties. Any qualified Part 135 operator or aircraft broker can join the Tuvoli platform with no upfront financial commitment and have access to its full suite of offerings on mobile devices or computers, according to the company.

“The entire industry is being held back by a lack of direct connectivity to each other, including the ability to pay or be paid, any time, at rates that make sense; that was the driving force behind our incubation of Tuvoli,” said Directional Aviation principal Kenn Ricci. “Tuvoli pairs technology, modern methods of payment processing, and charter industry intelligence on one clean platform to unlock growth potential for private aviation companies.”

Tuvoli president and chief technology officer Greg Johnson said the platform has been beta-tested for 12 months and successfully processed $25 million worth of charter flights to date.

Under Tuvoli’s guaranteed payment system, the broker (buyer) authorizes moving funds into a holding account once an operator (seller) has been selected and terms have been confirmed. The operator can then see that the funds are guaranteed for the trip and, upon completion of the trip, can request immediate transfer for payment.

In the event that the operator cannot fulfill the trip, the buyer can repurpose the funds quickly for use with a different provider. Movement of funds at each stage of the transaction is FDIC-insured. Buyers and sellers pay “nominal fees” on transactions.

“Tuvoli’s technology unlocks efficiencies and eliminates constraints that have held back the growth potential of charter market participants of all sizes for far too long,” said Johnson. “A healthy, diverse and connected pool of supply and demand is critical to the long-term prospects of the industry. With Tuvoli, we are offering operators and brokers of all sizes the technology they need to grow. ”