Celebrating 15 Years:
Highlighting FltPlan Users

When FltPlan decided to mark its 15th anniversary, we looked to our users. Without the loyal following that FltPlan has built in its 15 years of providing flight planning and other services, we simply would not exist. It is fitting that we pay tribute to our users, many of whom have been with us since 1999. The pilots profiled here represent the diversity of the 150,000-plus aviation professionals and private pilots to whom we owe our growth and success. We will keep striving to offer the services and features that make your flying experiences safer, easier and more enjoyable.

As we continue to grow, we have not lost sight of those who have supported us throughout the years. We thank our advertisers and all who use our services for making our 15-year anniversary possible. Here's to another 15 years!

Chief Pilot Jad Donaldson, a FltPlan user since 1999, operates a Citation XLS Plus and a Corvallis TT out of Ann Arbor, Michigan (KARB). “We visit about 400 airports a year. We are flying every other day. We’re flying all over the United States, Canada, and other points in North America.” In 1999, Donaldson was a fixed wing medevac pilot and convinced other pilots at his company to use FltPlan. “We moved our entire Part 135 operation onto FltPlan.com.” More recently, Donaldson values FltPlan’s cross platform operation. “We love the iPad app, FltPlan Go. We use it every single day. It has allowed us to make our operations essentially paperless.” Donaldson says that FltPlan is not only innovative, but stays on the cutting edge. “I think they are doing things that are prudent for all pilots to use,” he says. “I haven’t found anyone who can do it better . . . there is not a better resource in the industry that you can use.”

Gavin Singh has been a FltPlan user since 2000. At the first company Singh worked for, he was one of the first to use FltPlan. He says, “The chief pilot saw me using it and then others saw me using it. Everyone jumped on the bandwagon and started using it.” Singh, who now works for an air charter company, operates a Learjet 35 and a Learjet 55 out of Teterboro, New Jersey (KTEB). Singh typically flies anywhere from three to four times a week. He has filed over 5,500 flights using FltPlan.com. Singh says, “I like how FltPlan keeps adding features. FltPlan makes it a one-stop shopping deal.” He continues to say, ““When I started using FltPlan, it was your basic flight plan service,” he said. “Now, there’s so much more you can do with it.”

Mark Chaney’s company has been using FltPlan for about 11 years. Chaney, Director of Aviation for a corporate flight department, currently flies a Citation Excel out of Charlotte Douglas International Airport (KCLT). Chaney files about 450 hours per year and has filed up to nine flight plans in one day. “Being so easy to use is one of the things we like about FltPlan. Anytime something comes up, FltPlan has been really responsive about explaining to us that we may be doing something incorrectly. If there is a glitch in something, FltPlan takes care of it right away,” says Chaney. “FltPlan is the best bang for the buck in my view.”

Joseph Langdeau from Wolcott, Connecticut is a flight instructor with Instrument and Multi-Engine Instructor rating (CFII and MEI). Langdeau has been using FltPlan since 2008 and flies between three to four flights per week. Langdeau flies multiple aircraft and appreciates the versatility of FltPlan and its mobile apps. “FltPlan never gets stale. If it's not a new feature, it's making their current features more functional,” says Langdeau. Langdeau also helps his students set up their electronic logbook using FltPlan’s eLogbook tool. “FltPlan makes my job as a flight instructor much easier. I can easily check my students' pre-flight planning from the website and also use the FltPlan’s mobile apps for use in flight on cross-country flights.” One of the best things about FltPlan, according to Langdeau, is that it is free. "When I have a new student, I don’t have to tell them to spend even more money to have access to mobile apps.”

Steve Pannozzo, who began using FltPlan in 1999, has been a user since almost day one. Pannozzo says, “I like the Go app, the Weight & Balance tools, and the Checklist. They are all nice features combined into one app.” Pannozzo flies Challenger 300s for a corporate flight department out of Morristown, New Jersey (KMMU). His trips vary from 20 minute hops to five hour flights to the west coast. He flies an average of 16 flights per month and estimates that he has filed a couple thousand flight plans using FltPlan. “For the general aviation community and for business and corporate pilots, it is just amazing for all the features you get and it is free . . . FltPlan keeps evolving.”

Melissa Norton flies a Socata TBM7 out of Bedford, Massachusetts (KBED). Norton typically flies once a week and has been using FltPlan “pretty much since it started.” With the new ICAO format flight plan, Norton said that FltPlan made it easy for her to identify the equipment she had in her plane and how to file. “It took a lot of the worry out of the process that we were not filing properly,” she said. “FltPlan did the homework for us, which was very nice.” Norton also likes the Quick Info fuel section that helps her plan for fuel stops along one of her 1,700nm trips from Bedford, Massachusetts (KBED) to Jackson Hole, Wyoming (KJAC). “The Quick Info’s fuel stop option gives me information so I can make better decisions as to where I am going to stop for fuel – FltPlan makes it so much easier.”

Bill Cope has been a FltPlan user since 2000. Cope flies three to four days a week, mostly in jets and occasionally in piston and turboprop aircraft out of airports around the Little Rock, Arkansas area. According to Cope, “FltPlan morphs and changes. Somebody at FltPlan is really on the ball. As corporate aviation changes and evolves, FltPlan evolves right along with it, especially with international flying.” Cope says, “If a bunch of techno nerds ran FltPlan it probably wouldn’t be as much on the ball as it is. The fact that pilots are involved with FltPlan makes it very innovative.” Cope also adds, “When FltPlan.com came online I said to one of my co-pilots, ‘this is going to revolutionize corporate aviation’ and I think it has.”

DD Dorris flies a Citation XL out of San Antonio, Texas (KSAT). Dorris flies approximately two flights per week around the U.S. and the Caribbean and has been a user since 2004. “FltPlan is capable of handling every flight that I have, such as to Alaska and the Caribbean.” When flying internationally, Dorris values FltPlan’s eAPIS system. “The service I use the most and that I’ve found to be one of the biggest benefits is FltPlan’s eAPIS. We use it all the time because of the ease of using it.” Dorris also likes that FltPlan is innovative. “I can’t believe that they keep coming up with new products and new services. FltPlan is staying right on top of our needs.”

Chris Lentini has been a loyal FltPlan user since the year 2000. Over a 14 year span, he and the pilots in his busy flight department have filed more than 35,000 flight plans. Lentini flies out of Pontiac, Michigan (KPTK) and operates a variety of aircraft including twin engine piston aircraft, turboprops, citation jets, and more. Lentini’s flight department flies over 200 flights per month using FltPlan.com, with some months exceeding 250 flights. Lentini views FltPlan as a business tool. “It is our primary means of communication with the pilots. It also allows us to communicate with our passengers as well. By using the passenger brief function, we can always send out information to the passengers so they can confirm accuracy and get all the details.”

Holly Billeris is a chief pilot for a private equity firm in New York. Billeris manages a busy flight department operating two Challenger 604s out of Teterboro, New Jersey (KTEB). She says that FltPlan is not only a comprehensive but also a user-friendly program. “It’s seamless and it’s easy," she said. "I now have a scheduler who uses it and she finds it easy to use.” In addition, Billeris’s flight department finds FltPlan’s eAPIS system valuable. “FltPlan took something that looked like it was going to be very complicated, but in fact made it very easy to accomplish.” Billeris said, “There is just so much that’s great about this program. I don’t see a reason to use anything else.”

Jack Gordon started flying in 2000, and has been using FltPlan to file his flight plans ever since. Gordon, a flight manager and a full-time flight department chief pilot, flies weekly and operates a Citation Encore out of Fresno, California (KFAT). Jack Gordon says that flight planning, weight and balance, and digital charts have been some of the most useful additions to FltPlan’s features. As a full-time flight department chief pilot, budget is a large responsibility for Gordon. “Keeping costs down is absolutely important," he said. "But, safety and quality are important, too. By far, FltPlan.com is a superior product to anything else I’ve seen out there in the market. I’m exclusive with FltPlan.com. In 14 years, FltPlan has never failed me.”

Bill Ehrhorn, owner of Marathon Jet Center, uses FltPlan for both his FBO operation and his flight operation. “I’ve been using FltPlan almost since its inception,” says Ehrhorn. “The fact that I can use FltPlan on my phone, on my iPad, and on my desktop is absolutely valuable.” Ehrhorn flies a Piper Seneca and finds that FltPlan "understands what pilots need and what pilots use. Having used other flight planning sources, FltPlan is without question the most sophisticated and the easiest to use ergonomically.” Ehrhorn adds, “FltPlan is one of the few organizations out there that really does a bang up job in catering to pilots and providing very useful resources.”

Jay Schmalfuss, chief pilot of a corporate flight department, flies a Super KingAir B200 out of Cincinnati, Ohio (KLUK). Schmalfuss began using FltPlan about nine years ago and primarily flies in the continental U.S. and occasionally to Canada and the British Virgin Islands. “My favorite new aspect of their program is the Go app because it is completely free. It has geo referencing for free. Out of the other apps I have used, FltPlan Go is number one. It is the easiest to use in my opinion.” He adds, “You create your flight plan online and then when you are ready to go, it is already there on your iPad.”

Bill Bohlke is an FAA examiner and the owner of Bohlke International Airways. Bohlke operates a variety of aircraft including a Gulfstream 100, Cessna S550 Citation SII, King Air 200B, and a Mitsubishi Solitaire out of Rohlsen Virgin Islands (TISX). Bohlke has been using FltPlan since the beginning. “When it was first offered, we signed up. We’ve filed tons of flight plans and use it all the time.” Bohlke likes the simplicity of FltPlan and the services and features that make his international flights easier, like the eAPIS service. Another of his favorite features is Quick Info, which he uses for flight times and distances. Bohlke also operates a flight school with a Beechcraft Duchess and four Diamond aircraft. “I make sure that all of our students know about FltPlan.com," Bohlke said.

John Rempel, chief pilot and captain of a Learjet 60 out of Winnipeg, Canada (CYWG), has been using FltPlan for about eight years. Rempel averages more than 20 legs per month and has filed approximately 2,400 flight plans with FltPlan. Rempel primarily flies intra-Canadian flights, however, he also files several trips a month to the states. Rempel said that it is FltPlan’s accuracy that separates them from the competition. That, along with the customer support teams’ responsiveness. Rempel says, “I have emailed FltPlan a couple of times just telling them how much I appreciate them.”

Joe Sasser, of Granbury, Texas (0TX1), has been a FltPlan user since 1999. Sasser likes the simplicity of FltPlan. He says, “It is easy to use and it is an innovative program.” Sasser flies a Beechcraft Bonanza based in a hangar that is attached to his house. Sasser flies two to three flights per week and averages 200 hours per year. “I get all the weather and all the flight plan information I need from one source, and of course it is free to the users,” says Sasser. “I recommend it to all my flying friends. I am a big supporter of FltPlan.”