Flapper, a Brazil-based on-demand private aviation provider, has joined The Air Charter Association (The ACA), becoming the first company headquartered in the country to become an ACA affiliate. Founded in 1949, The ACA is a worldwide trade association for companies and individuals engaged in aircraft charter business. It leads industry self-regulation, promoting the best supply chain relationships and its members maintain the highest standards of conduct and professionalism in the aviation market.

The ACA CEO Glenn Hogben welcomes the news, as ACA envisions to strengthen its global membership: “We are delighted to welcome Flapper as a member of the association. Adding the first member in Brazil is an excellent demonstration of our growing worldwide membership. It is also another important step to increase the international recognition of the highest standards and professional service our members provide.”

For Paul Malicki, Flapper's CEO, joining The ACA is aligned with the company's vision to become a gateway to Latin American charter services, with a special focus on international clients: “We look forward to working closely with the members of The Air Charter Association to create a safer and more digital business aviation charter market. As the industry's most exclusive business aviation association, The ACA constitutes a seal of quality and trustworthiness that customers can rely on when searching for business aviation services, in Latin America and beyond.”

By joining The ACA, the company intends to learn from members in Europe and share best practices from its own region. The marketplace recently became the first business aviation player to integrate with the local civil aviation authorities' online airworthiness verification system, allowing it to automatically homologate each Part 135 aircraft registered on its platform on a daily basis.

Flapper, which is both ARGUS- and Wyvern-certified, offers charter flights across Latin America and has offices in Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Argentina and Mexico. It currently represents four Part 135 operators under exclusive marketing agreements on Avinode and sells pay-per-seat flights and empty legs through its mobile app and corporate travel systems in Latin America. It reports 250,000 users of its mobile app and 620 aircraft registered on its proprietary system.

Nearly 49 per cent of all flight requests Flapper received in 2020 came from Europe-based companies. The UK, Switzerland and France top the list of countries with the highest number of requests for flights within Latin America, according to the company's internal statistics.

Among the most sought-after arrival airports in Europe in 2020, Flapper highlights respectively: Milan Malpensa, Paris Le Bourget, Lisbon, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Manchester and Nice.