Startup company OpenAirplane is hoping to launch later this year with a program that would allow participating pilots to rent aircraft from a network of widespread operators based on one annual checkout performed at one location. The company says it has partnered with the insurance company Starr Aviation to create a "standardization and evaluation program." In practice, that program would serve as a keystone for the business, eliminating the barriers of cost and time that "local checkouts" would otherwise impose on a traveling pilot. In theory, OpenAirplane co-founder Rod Rakic expects that the system will also bring other benefits. "We know that pilots who participate in a checkout program like the one we have in mind fly more safely," says Rakic. He is betting that participating operators will also see gains.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/news/a-new-take-on-renting-planes