Originally Posted by Jetscream
Trying to build a business or an app on empty legs is utter fantasy and works for a very few people
I disagree with your first point but agree with the second. I once worked with a company which used various unorthodox tactics to sell charter flights - they would put an imaginary empty leg on Avinode, sell it, and then sell the empty leg of the empty leg, and so on. They had a couple of talented chaps who seemed to be familiar with certain routes and could almost predict demand with uncanny accuracy.
A large factor in their success was that they didn't have to ask the aircraft owners to approve each trip; the owners provided their schedule in advance and the aircraft were free to be sold the rest of the time.
However, the entire thing mostly fell apart due to the reasons listed in your very well-put and entirely correct paragraphs #8 and #9.
In general, I think off-market charter can be a good way to keep aircraft owners, brokers, and charter passengers happy, while sticking it to inept management companies...
fly22, you make good points but I think the idea of the app is perhaps not to be a precise tool but instead to give the customer a general idea and then get him in touch with the sales team, who can then do the required sweet-talking. This is not a bad thing, as often customers have no idea what they want.