French flight sharing startup Wingly raises €3 million to expand into commercial aviation market

Wingly, a Paris-based flight sharing platform, has raised €3 million to launch a new commercial aviation service and accelerate its growth in France, Germany and the UK. Fellow Parisian firm Innovacom led the funding round.

Founded in 2015, the startup created a flight sharing platform that allows private pilots and passengers to share the cost of flights. In a press release, the company says 20,000 private pilots are registered with the platform, a network built in part by a €2 million seed round in 2018.

The new service, Wingly Pro, will allow smaller, commercial aviation operators to advertise their flights and connect directly with potential passengers. Operators will be able to post flights with spare seats, including empty flights. Finally, all such operators will be thoroughly vetted by Wingly, who will verify certifications from the Civil Aviation Authority for commercial transport across Europe. As for the new commercial booking function of the Parisian platform, the startup has obtained a European-wide travel agency licence.

"The launch of Wingly Pro this summer will extend our vision and make Wingly the largest collaborative community for private aviation,” said co-founder and CEO Emeric de Waziers. He also mentions an objective “to connect the 500+ airfields in the UK and also expands our inventory to add many more helicopter flights.”