Learn More
Back to newsroom
News Portside Acquires Professional Flight Management (PFM)

Portside Acquires Professional Flight Management (PFM) to Expand Its Portfolio of Technology Solutions for Private, Business & Government Aviation

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.-- Today, Portside announced it has acquired Professional Flight Management (PFM), a leading 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. Today, 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 ExpensePulseTM, Portside continues 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, 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. Today, 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.

Together, 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 sizable, 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,” said Alek Vernitsky, CEO of Portside. “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.”

Continue development of private, business and government aviation technology

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.

Advance software solutions available to the industry

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.

Accelerate the process to upgrade software

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 them continue to grow their product suite at a fast pace focused on serving the end user,” said Bill Figures, Founder of PFM. “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,” added Julie Figures.

About PFM

Professional Flight Management, Inc. (PFM) provides the most comprehensive set of scheduling, record keeping and reporting applications for corporate, private and government flight departments. Their products include Corporate Flight Scheduling & Dispatch, Record-Keeping, Request & Corporate Shuttle Systems, Crew Apps, Lobby Flight Status Board, among others which are integrated into many third-party providers so customers can use the vendors of their choice. PFM has expanded to work with over 200 private, corporate and government flight departments worldwide. PFM is headquartered in Bala Cynwyd, PA with team members located within the US. More information about PFM can be found at www.pfmsys.com

About Portside

Portside is developing a modern, cloud-based operating system for business and government aviation: a set of integrated solutions addressing major industry pain points. The Portside platform supports over 150 operators of business jets, helicopters, industrial and government fleets, as well as fractional jet ownership programs in over 30 countries. Portside is headquartered in San Francisco with team members across the US, Europe and Asia. Learn more about Portside at www.portside.aero

Media Contact: media@portside.co

Oct 12, 2022

Latest news

News Portside's Avianis and Staffing Marketplace
Jun 24, 2025

Portside’s Avianis Simplifies Business Aviation Staffing with New Integration

SAN FRANCISCO, June 24, 2025 – Avianis, a leading flight management system by Portside, today announced its integration with Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace to streamline staffing for business aviation operators. The integration gives Avianis users direct access to Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace’s comprehensive database of business aviation professionals.

Avianis users can now connect to Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace to create job postings directly from their Avianis profile. The integration offers direct access to Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace’s centralized recruitment platform enabling users to manage hiring needs without leaving their Avianis profile.

“This partnership with Jet Aviation Staffing reflects our mission to revolutionize business aviation by driving simplicity,” said Alek Vernitsky, CEO of Portside. “Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace gives operators a smarter, simpler way to source talent and stay mission-ready. It’s a meaningful step toward digitizing the industry, reducing silos, and putting operators back in control of their workforce.”

Almost every aspect of the recruitment process, including candidate search, application review, and tracking, is integrated into a single digital system for more informed decision-making while minimizing administrative load, eliminating manual data entry and toggling between systems, and streamlining crew management end-to-end. As trip or staffing updates occur, data syncs automatically across both systems.

By removing silos and automating critical workflows, Avianis and Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace help operators stay agile, elevate service delivery, and adapt to the growing complexity of business aviation.

To request a demo or learn more about Avianis or Jet Aviation Staffing Marketplace, contact sales@portside.co or visit www.portside.co.

About Portside, Inc. Portside is a leading provider of cutting-edge software solutions for the global aviation industry, serving over 1,500 customers operating 14,000+ aircraft across 40+ countries. The modular platform supports business aviation, regional airlines, and aircraft leasing companies with tools for operations, compliance, crew management, finance, and more. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Portside is dedicated to driving innovation and operational efficiency in aviation. To learn more, visit www.portside.co.

Media Contact

Lynn Moore
843-342-3921
media@portside.co

News Portside Launches Horizon
Feb 24, 2025

Portside Launches Horizon: The Ultimate Cloud-Based Solution for Business Aviation Management

Portside Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based solutions for business aviation, is proud to announce the launch of Horizon, a groundbreaking software designed to meet the needs of larger, more complex flight departments, fractional ownership programs, and jet card operators. Built with flexibility and scalability in mind, Horizon is a fully cloud-based, modular platform that empowers operators with advanced reporting, seamless third-party integrations, and powerful API capabilities.

Horizon streamlines aviation management by offering a highly configurable system that eliminates the need to navigate multiple platforms, providing a unified interface where critical operational, financial, and compliance data are easily accessible. The software is backed by industry experts and features Microsoft Power BI reporting, real-time wind data, and built-in crew training tracking with automated compliance alerts. Optimized for remote workforces, Horizon ensures seamless access to critical information anytime, anywhere, while incorporating advanced security and compliance standards to safeguard sensitive data.

As part of the Portside Platform, Horizon integrates effortlessly with existing aviation solutions, allowing operators to enhance their workflow without disruption. Having been deployed by one of the largest operators in the United States, Horizon is a proven, enterprise-grade solution that sets a new standard for efficiency, visibility, and control in business aviation.

“Horizon is a direct response to the growing need for a more flexible, powerful, and user-friendly software solution in the business aviation space,” said Alek Verntisky, CEO at Portside Inc. “We designed this platform to address the challenges faced by complex flight departments and operators who require scalability, automation, and real-time insights to optimize their operations.”

Horizon is now available to operators worldwide. To learn more about how Horizon can transform your aviation operations, visit www.Portside.co.

About Portside: Portside is a leading provider of cutting-edge software solutions for the global aviation industry, serving business aviation, regional commercial airlines, and aircraft leasing & finance. With a team of 300 professionals across 20 countries, Portside supports over 1,000 enterprise customers, including 70 regional passenger and cargo airlines, worldwide. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Portside is dedicated to driving innovation and operational efficiency in aviation.

News Portside Acquires Takeflite
Jul 24, 2024

Portside Acquires Takeflite To Bring a Comprehensive Operational Platform to Both Commercial and Business Airlines

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, UNITED STATES, July 24, 2024 -- Portside, a leading innovator in software solutions for business and government aviation, has acquired Takeflite, a leading provider of cloud-based solutions for commercial and cargo airlines. This strategic addition strengthens Portside’s comprehensive suite of aviation software solutions.

Takeflite offers a full set of solutions for scheduled, cargo, charter, corporate and humanitarian operators to allow airlines to manage their complex and highly dynamic operations across all areas of the organization. The platform provides all necessary functions from pricing, internet bookings, charter quotes, and cargo, through to operations, dispatch, crew and aircraft management, along with financial management and comprehensive reporting and data analysis.

“When airlines and other aviation operators are seeking to streamline operations, it is essential for them to have a single system of record that provides visibility into their customers, operations and profitability,” said Alek Vernitsky, Portside CEO. “Takeflite is a leading provider of technology solutions to cargo and commercial airlines, and we are excited to have them in the Portside family.”

Jason Hopkins, founder and CEO of Takeflite commented, “We have been providing enterprise grade aviation solutions since 2005. We’re proud of our long track record of helping our customers with a wide variety of airline operations. We are enormously excited to bring our skills and expertise to create value for not only Portside and Takeflite customers, but also to extend our unified platform to the broader aviation market.”

Takeflite was advised by Traction Advising. “Takeflite's mission critical software is a fantastic business built by great people. The combination with Portside’s platform makes great strategic sense and is good for their customers, employees and investors." Lowell Ricklefs, Founder Traction Advising

About Takeflite: Founded in 2005, over 60 aviation companies around the world depend on Takeflite for planning, pricing, distribution, reservations, departure control, operations, crew scheduling, safety, cargo, and maintenance management. Headquartered in Auckland, NZ and with team members in the U.S., U.K., and Kenya, we are a passionate team of engineers and aviation experts constantly scanning the digital world for insights and solutions that can be applied to aviation to increase your revenue and efficiency. For more information, visit www.tflite.com.

About Portside: Portside, Inc. is a premier provider of modern software solutions for the aviation industry. Portside’s cloud-based suite of products is designed to support all aspects of flight operations, including scheduling and record keeping (Avianis, BART and PFM product lines), safety management (Baldwin), fleet and crew optimization (Portside Optimizer), data sharing, reporting and analytics (Portside Owner Portal / Budget & Planning Dashboard), crew recruiting (Staffing Marketplace), and trip planning (Portside Trip Assist). Portside supports over 1,000 customers in 40+ countries, including commercial and cargo airlines, operators of business aircraft and helicopters, medevac, industrial and government fleets, as well as fractional ownership programs. For more information, visit www.portside.aero.