Tradewind Aviation
88
RecommendTradewind Aviation sells a scheduled seat on its own shuttle routes, including Northeast and island city pairs.
High confidence Sell-by-seat
Facts
| Website | https://www.flytradewind.com/ |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Oxford, Connecticut |
| Founded | 2001 |
| Ownership | Private. Eric Zipkin is chief executive. |
| Who it is for | Travelers who want a scheduled seat in the Northeast or the Caribbean |
| Pricing model | Scheduled seats |
| Specialties | Sell-by-seat |
| Industries served | personal travel |
Verdict
The flight is booked like a ticket, from a private terminal on many U.S. legs. It suits travelers who already know the route and want a seat rather than the whole cabin.
The trade-off is a fixed route map. If the city pair is not on the schedule, this is not a substitute for on-demand charter.
Tradewind Aviation scores 88 and ranks 2 in this set. The number is a weighted composite, not a star average.
Approach
The company runs a scheduled shuttle and a charter book on one fleet.
What they offer
- Founded in 2001 by Eric and David Zipkin.
- Scheduled seats and charter on Pilatus PC-12s.
- Bases include Westchester, Oxford, San Juan, and Stuart, Florida.
- 2022 order for 20 more PC-12s, deliveries running into 2027.
Score breakdown
Each criterion is scored out of 100 from public product facts. The composite weights customer experience at 30%, booking transparency at 20%, aircraft and airport access at 20%, flexibility at 15%, and safety standards at 15%.
Customer outcomes
| Dimension | Score | Bar | Vs. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Customer experience and service | 88 | +10.0 | |
| Booking and pricing transparency | 90 | +14.0 |
Company and commercial
| Dimension | Score | Bar | Vs. median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aircraft and airport access | 86 | +8.0 | |
| Flexibility and commitment | 86 | +8.0 | |
| Safety standards | 90 | +3.0 |
Pricing
Scheduled seats are sold by the flight. Charter of the whole PC-12 is a separate booking. A fare table was not copied.
| Plan | Price | What stands out |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled seat | Per flight | Northeast islands, Caribbean, and Florida to the Bahamas. |
| Whole aircraft | Charter quote | Same PC-12 fleet, on your schedule. |
| Fleet | About 39 PC-12s | Wikipedia tally as of August 2026. The company says 35-plus. |
Best at / Poor fit when
Best at
- Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, St. Barths, or the Bahamas, when a seat is enough.
- A short runway that a jet charter does not want.
- A repeat seasonal trip.
Poor fit when
- A coast-to-coast cabin.
- A heavy jet.
- A national membership.
Use-case fit matrix
| Use case | Fit | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, or a similar hop | Strong | Check that the flight is on sale. |
| Coast-to-coast cabin | Weak | Wrong map. |
Where it sits in the field
Price band on the horizontal axis. Editorial composite on the vertical axis. Bands are product types, not invoices.
Tradewind Aviation scores 88 and ranks 2 in this set. A tie shares the rank. The number does not measure market share.
Timeline
- 2001: founded in Connecticut.
- 2022: large PC-12 order.
- 2024 to 2025: Florida to Bahamas schedules expand.
Leadership
| Name | Title | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Eric Zipkin | Co-founder and chief executive | Pilot and founder. |
| David Zipkin | Co-founder and chief commercial officer | Named on the company page and on Wikipedia. |
Methodology and sign-off
Overall = (Support + Reliability + Flexibility + Value + Booking clarity) / 5.
Each input is an editorial read of public terms, not a mean of star ratings.
Reviewed by The Private Jet Index desk.
Conflicts: none are disclosed for this company.
Tradewind Aviation did not pay for this review.
Updated September 27, 2026. Methodology.
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