Miwok Launches

It is no surprise that Miwok Airways has captured the attention of the blogosphere with numerous mentions now that it has launched its air taxi operation which includes the entire Southern California catchment area. Aviation Today’s VLJ Report first reported on the fledgling venture a month ago. Related Story Given the fact that owner Gad Barnea uses Facebook and its own passengers in its viral marketing, it is not a stretch for the carrier to tap the blogosphere in addition to more traditional media, such as the Los Angeles Times. Indeed, he follows many in the field who earned their stripes in the technology field and then moved to aviation.
Bloggers note that Miwok has a lot going for it and is the first per-seat, on-demand service beyond DayJet’s operation in the southeast. But, unlike DayJet’s Eclipse 500s, Miwok is using four Cirrus SR-22s. Still that should not be a problem given the fact that Miwok, based on a California Indian name, promises private air service at economy prices. Given the commercial air service hassle factor that seems to be a no brainer. A typical fare between LA and San Diego would be $300, according to the Times but would be reduced if someone else tagged along to about $110 should there be three passengers. Unlike BlueSky Taxi, which puts a taxi meter in the cockpit, Miwok describes itself as an air transportation hybrid, using the tradition cost per seat mile. Related Story
Most of the 40 airports within its catchment area – San Diego in the south, Oxnard in the northwest, and Palm Springs in the east – have long since had signs saying “you can’t get there from here,” so its service should be a welcome relief.
What sets Miwok apart is its use of viral marketing through social networking sites. Passengers who have booked a flight can use Facebook to message others about the flight to gain more passengers and defray the costs. Miwok’s web site is linked to Facebook and allows passengers to “airpool” much like the development of carpooling services of the past. Passengers can identify travelers who frequently need to travel to the same destinations. It also combines a Mapquest-like feature in which the passenger enters an address and the software delivers the nearest airfield and already-booked flights allowing them to determine whether or not to book their own flight. Passengers can also choose to keep the flight to themselves, blocking it from being listed. Investors include “Silicon Valley Angels," according to Barnea, who has also invested in the company.
Barea hopes to franchise the operation and already has sights set on Northern California, Nevada and Arizona. Ultimate plans call for an east coast expansion and then strategic expansion across other the country. However, Barnea said that expansion depends on “discipline and a focus on profitability.” Franchisees must have a single-engine Part 135 certificate using Cirrus aircraft on its ops specs. Miwok screens applicants against its selection criteria. The plan is to keep it simple on a single aircraft but Barnea may consider adding other aircraft types later, including the Cirrus Jet and VLJs for longer-range, high-demand missions.
“Miwok is a charter company in effect using its own software to schedule the on demand services of four Cirrus aircraft owned by someone else,” wrote Air Taxi Association General Counsel Mark Fava in a recent brief. “Miwok's business plan is making several interesting assumption. First, one assumption is that people will use an air taxi for much shorter trips…Second, another assumption is that the passenger is willing to trade low fares for a shared airplane although Miwok will price the trip higher if no one else joins your trip. Sharing an Eclipse is one thing. Sharing the back seats of a Cirrus is a little more intimate, but still much more comfortable and more room than a center seat on an airline coach class flight! However, Miwok's flight booking system will leverage the social networking capability of the internet to ease the unknown of sharing the aircraft. That's also a first and an excellent concept!”