Startup Training Outfit Having Success With Old Idea
SimplyFLY presents prospects with the idea that flying is simply a fun thing to do. Early results are very promising.
This is one way to grow aviation. David Spano and Tony Sabos are the pair behind SimplyFLY, and their mission is to grow sport aviation by targeting the general public. They take a REMOS LSA mockup to local fairs, festivals and other events, where they sell discovery flights---a half-hour instructional flight for $75.
SimplyFLY says about 15% of those who make the flight go on to get their Sport Pilot or Private Pilot tickets. All of the training is done in REMOS aircraft. SimplyFLY has four of them, plus a new dealer demo aircraft for sales.
SimplyFLY claims its success is their approach to engaging the public. They work to correct false perceptions and to present flying as an attainable sport. It's all about selling fun, not aviation, they argue.
SimplyFLY is ready to go for those discovery flight customers who decide to take that next step. The outfit, based at Aurora (KARR) near Chicago, offers a Sport Pilot certificate package for $6,400 and the Private Pilot one $9,600, competitive prices.
The idea to reach out to the general public at non-aviation-related events with learn to fly packages has been done since the 1930s, often with great success. SimplyFLY's results using this time-honored approach seem to show that there's a receptive audience waiting.
The second REMOS dealer in North America, SimplyFLY has their own plans to expand to other major metropolitan areas.
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