SocialFlight adds adventure guidance

A Destinations feature “is the result of a year-long team effort to painstakingly document some of the most fun and interesting places to fly in North America, including detailed information, photos, reviews, and even crew car and transportation data,” the company announced. It allows interactive searches specific to airports, events, and desired radius. In addition to that, SocialFlight members may receive a biweekly, personalized email dubbed the SocialFlight Destination Digest.

Jeff Simon, founder and president of SocialFlight, describes it as a “personalized adventure guide,” tailored to the individual user, based on the user’s location and event history in their profile. The first thing the recipient sees is the image of a purely aspirational, national point of interest. “You may not do that, but it might inspire you,” Simon said.

After that, there are hand-picked, regional trip recommendations in a 500-mile radius from the recipient’s location. Other sections recommend more local attractions closer to home that can be covered with shorter trips.

“You know how pilots get stuck in a rut and do the same kind of flying every time they go up. This gives them a mission and new experiences,” he said. Simon’s aim is to get people to fly and fly more. The new feature and the Destination Digest are the newest tools to help pilots achieve that goal.

“I’ve been using SocialFlight for years, but the new destinations feature has opened up a whole new world of flying for me,” said author, pilot, and aviation educator Brian Schiff, according to SocialFlight’s recent press release. “As soon as the SocialFlight Destinations Digest hits my inbox, I find myself planning new adventures to places I never knew existed. It gives me hundreds of new reasons to go flying.”

Launched in 2012, SocialFlight evolved from a website listing fly-ins and aviation events to a networking tool for pilots, allowing users to find each other and search for events wherever aviators are or want to be—all free of charge. The app and website are sponsored by companies “who supported us for a decade. They know that when aviation thrives, they benefit, too,” Simon said.

Counting 15,000 members upon its inception, SocialFlight now reaches 200,000 pilots and is not only a tool for finding travel destinations, but also offers inspection authorization renewals, webinars, and videos on pilot training and technique.

It is available on the Apple app store for iPhone and iPad, on the Google Play store for Android phones and tablets, and on www.SocialFlight.com.