San Francisco-based cloud-based operating systems developer Portside has acquired Professional Flight Management (PFM), a scheduling and dispatch software platform for corporate flight departments. The combination of Portside and PFM will provide an enhanced suite of software solutions for private, business and government flight departments.

Portside's mission is to bring modern technology to business aviation. The industry relies on many disconnected systems and manual processes. From streamlining operator communication with aircraft owners through the Portside Owner Portal; to allocating the fleet and crew effectively with Optimizer; to managing the backend expense and billing processes with ExpensePulse, Portside aims to provide its customers with innovative solutions addressing their key pain points.

PFM's mission is to provide a comprehensive set of scheduling, record keeping and reporting applications for corporate, private and government flight departments. Founded by Bill Figures in 1983 and originally born out of a Fortune 100 company's flight department, PFM has been led by Bill and Julie Figures, serving customers for almost 40 years. PFM supports hundreds of flight departments, including many of the largest Fortune 500 corporate fleets in the world. Customers choose PFM because they value the company's innovative and resilient solutions, 24/7 customer support and the ability to meet challenging needs faced by complex flight departments operating globally.

Portside and PFM will continue development of private, business and government aviation technology, advance software solutions available to the industry and accelerate the process to upgrade software for the increasingly mobile-first and cloud-based business aviation ecosystem. The combined company will have a sizeable, fast-growing market opportunity and capabilities to drive significant value for customers and the industry.

“Portside's competitive advantage is our ability to focus on the customer experience and deliver cutting-edge technologies,” says CEO Alek Vernitsky. “With PFM, we now gain a deeper understanding of the needs and expectations for the corporate flight departments, which will accelerate our vision to support the broader private, business and government aviation industry.”

Portside and PFM are deeply committed to pushing the industry forward by developing innovative tools. With Portside's and PFM's extensive product set, customers will be able to access a greater set of robust capabilities to support the safety, efficiency and collaboration needed to manage a well-run flight department.

Operators are challenged with the ever-changing requirements imposed on their operation impacting their ability to scale effectively. Whether it be staffing constraints, asset management, regulation, communication tools or mobile accessibility, there are many processes that are currently managed with excel sheets and phone calls that can easily be solved with the right technology. With PFM, Portside takes another step forward in assembling and creating a comprehensive business and government aviation platform.

Upgrading complex legacy systems is no easy feat. With Portside's expertise, PFM products will have a clear path to cloud-based, mobile-first architecture. This will benefit all stakeholders, as upgraded technology will allow operators to maintain a modern operation, while having the flexibility to operate in a resilient way that's critical for government and corporate customers alike.

“Portside has a bold vision of building an end-to-end technology ecosystem for corporate flight departments, and we have seen it continue to grow its product suite at a fast pace focused on serving the end user,” says Bill Figures.

“We always prided ourselves in treating our customers as family and are confident that our customers will be in good hands and will get added value as we join Portside,” adds Julie Figures.