A Founder’s Story with The CEO and Founder AeroBid, Zaher Deir

Zaher Deir is a private aviation veteran and CEO and Founder of AeroBid, a new live bidding platform that modernizes the private charter booking process. Using data and instant communications, it brings a fast, transparent, and convenient way for brokers to request charters for their clients, and for operators to receive and bid on live flight requests. More passengers are requesting to fly privately than ever before. Private aviation needs to improve the broker-operator relationship if it wants to take advantage of new opportunities. Aerobid believes it has the solution for brokers and operators.

He says: “The industry urgently needs a new approach to chartering private flights if both brokers and operators are to take advantage of the surge in customer interest. Real-time, accurate, data-driven bidding has become a must-have to secure the industry’s future.  That’s why I created AeroBid.”  

Deir says he always had entrepreneurial instincts.  He was born in Amman, Jordan, and was raised there until he was 18.  Then he was accepted to universities in the UK to study aircraft engineering. He was one of 5 boys and 2 girls who grew up in a neighborhood full of children of all ages who played football in the streets.  When the cars came to pass, they would stop and remove the goalposts.   Life in Jordan was remarkably simple, but he says amazing and necessitated that the kids always had to think on their feet.

Deir’s dad always insisted on taking his older brother and him to his work projects.  His father was a building contractor, so the kids always had some duties when they were on holiday from school.  They always had to be involved with the family business.  Because of this, from an early age, Deir always thought outside the box.  Whenever there was a problem or an issue, he focused all his attention on it until he found an effective solution. 

There is a key to business excellence, according to Deir:  As long as you believe in yourself and your project, do your homework and make sure that you have covered all the angles you could conceive of and proceed with confidence, and always have a plan B available – then you have a great chance at success.

Through the AeroBid platform, brokers can submit detailed flight requests, including aircraft specifications, destinations, and special requests. Operators can view live flight requests on the Platforms Marketplace and can also choose to receive instant notifications by text or email. Operators can then bid anonymously, in real-time, for the charter, allowing brokers to receive accurate, up-to-date bids on their flight specifications. Brokers benefit from faster responses and full transparency, while operators get new business delivered directly to them, thanks to instant notifications on key flight search criteria. 

With anonymous bids placed and received in real-time, AeroBid avoids the problems associated with static private charter marketplaces, such as price inaccuracy. With all operator and aircraft details clearly presented alongside bids, it creates a level playing field for operators to compete on value, not just price. For brokers, it’s a breath of fresh air: a fast, reliable way to access the right flights for their clients. As for operators, the platform opens a wealth of opportunities, reducing the need for extensive marketing and allowing operators to discover opportunities and passengers in new markets. 

 The platform was designed by Deir and other experienced business aviation experts, who recognized the need for an instant, data-driven bidding platform to help the industry cope with increased interest in private flights and enable everyone involved to benefit from immediacy and transparency in the bidding process. 

Deir applied the same tenacity and determination he learned in childhood to achieve this big success in his chosen field, the exciting and lucrative world of private aviation.