Miwok Airways

Miwok Airways is a on-demand short-distance airline based in Burlingame, California. The business is to open by the end of October 2008. It is similar to an air taxi service, but instead of a flat charge per flight, Miwok charges per seat, with ticket prices depending on the distance flown and the number of passengers per flight.cite news | url=http://travel.latimes.com/articles/la-trw-air6-2008sep06 | title=Start-up Miwok Airways offers a way to beat traffic with short-hop air service | publisher=Los Angeles Times | first=Peter | last=Pae | date=September 6 2008 | accessdate=2008-09-11]

Miwok's fleet consists of four four-seat Cirrus planes, which will initially transport up to three passengers between airfields from Oxnard to San Diego, the longest flight being convert|150|mi|km|0 from Oxnard to Palm Springs. If the Southern California market is successful, the company plans to expand service to the San Francisco Bay Area, followed by possibly Chicago and New York City.

The company does not actually have physical possession of any planes, but instead will subcontract out to charter airlines. Miwok's role is to act as an intermediary between the passenger and the charter company. Airfare is expected to range from $82 to $338 per ticket, with exact pricing determined via the company's proprietary software algorithms which it spent over two years developing. [cite web | url=http://www.airtaxilaw.com/2008/09/more-on-miwok.html | title=More on Miwok (Interview with Gad Barnea) | first=Mark | last=Fava | publisher=Air Taxi Industry Updates | accessdate=2008-09-11] Preston McAfee, the company's business advisor, [cite news | url=http://www.aviationtoday.com/vlj/categories/bga/25031.html | title=Miwok Offers On-Demand at Economy Prices | publisher=Aviation Today | date=August 11, 2008 | accessdate=2008-09-08] notes that the airline's competition is not other airline companies, but driving. Although the ticket cost will still be more expensive than driving the same distance, travel time is cut by approximately 60%, which is the selling point, especially in locations with large amounts of traffic congestion. [cite news | url=http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/Miwok_charter_air_service_flight_california_198734-1.html | title=Miwok Airways To Try Ultra Short Hops In SoCal | publisher=AVweb | first=Glenn | last=Pew | date=September 7 2008 | accessdate=2008-09-11]

Miwok Airways was founded by Gad Barnea, a former Israeli Air Force air traffic controller and a software entrepreneur. Barnea named the company after the Miwok people.

References

External links

* [http://www.flymiwok.com/ Miwok Airways web site]