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US
Supreme Court Denied Flytenow Review, The Uber
Of Air Passenger Travel |
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January 11, 2017
– On Monday, the United States Supreme Court
after reviewing an order by a lower court (an
order of certiorari), denied any further action
(Certiorari Denied) in the case of Flytenow
Inc.V.FAA. This means that the lover
court order by United States Court of
Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
stands.
Flytenow Inc. is a web-based company that took
on a similar business model of Uber, by
supplying the general public a cheaper way to
travel by aircraft by linking private pilots
with consumers.
When the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
learned of Flytenow activities it issued the
company a Letter of Interpretation which
indicated their activities were in violation of
FAA regulations. |
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The letter went
on to state that expense sharing is compensation
a commercial activity and because of that the
company needed to be a licensed carrier, it
pilots also needed to be commercial and or ATP
pilots and not private pilots. A similar letter
went out to AirPooler Inc. two years earlier
offering alike services. Flytenow Inc.
challenged its position in court and lost the
case. The company then filed a review with the
United States Supreme Court.
Jon Riches and attorney who represented Flytenow
said, “The Supreme Court missed an opportunity
today to correct an error made by the FAA and
lower courts that will now deprive millions of
Americans of a unique, convenient, and
affordable travel option.”
“What’s more, the court could have offered
direction to lower courts that protects the
First Amendment rights of people using other
sharing economy platforms, like Uber and Airbnb.
Hopefully the FAA will reverse its position on
this issue, and hopefully the court will decide
in another case to examine the important
constitutional issues raised.”
Matt Voska, a co-founder of Flytenow said “We
are disappointed with the court’s decision this
morning and we will be continuing our efforts in
Congress to overturn the FAA’s ban on online
flight sharing.” |
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