Latin American on-demand private aviation company Flapper has hired Giampiero Colognori to lead its aircraft sales department.

Flapper has recently launched a new line of business focused on aircraft sales. The aircraft acquisition department will be led by Colognori, whose track record includes Brazilian business aviation companies Avantto and Infinity Aviation. With the new service, Flapper hopes to facilitate the launch of an aircraft management department later this year.

“We are very excited to offer one more product to our customers in South America and beyond. We are now uniquely positioned to attend to the needs of even the most demanding frequent flyers,” says co-founder and CEO Paul Malicki.

The company doesn't intend to focus exclusively on aircraft sales brokerage, its service offering will include consulting services, full pre-sale aircraft checks and international transfer of the aircraft to the customer-preferred location.

"The current market is very polluted, with intermediaries charging hefty fees to HNWIs for simply connecting them with the right aircraft sales company. We intend to change that and take care of the full process,” adds Giampiero.

Flapper boasts a proprietary air charter inventory of more than 1,000 general aviation aircraft in Latin America and allows real-time charter quotes and, upon owner approval, the sale of individual seats. It also commercialises two fixed routes in Brazil, including Pilatus PC-12-based flights between São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. In 2021 the company reported 2.5 time growth of its year-on-year revenues, having accrued 300,000 users of its popular mobile app. Earlier this year it announced expansion to Europe, with local team hirings already taking place in key markets in the region.