Comparison
The alternatives, described without selling ourselves.
There are three common ways to run a flight school: spreadsheets, imported off-the-shelf software, and general-purpose planning tools. All three win somewhere. Below is where each one works, and exactly where our difference lies.
Row by row
Four approaches, the same questions
| Spreadsheet + WhatsApp | Imported SaaS | General-purpose tools | This product | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Setup cost | None | Low | Low | None |
| Turkish interface | Your own file | Usually none | Partial | Complete |
| Fit with SHGM practice | You build it | Part 141 / EASA focused | Not aviation-specific | Built for SHT-FCL practice |
| Flight-to-syllabus link | Manual | Yes | None | Automatic |
| Weight and balance | Separate file | Varies | None | Built in |
| Evaluation form design | Paper | Preset template | Needs a form tool | Your own fields |
| WhatsApp notifications | Sent by hand | Usually email | Needs an add-on | Configured out of the box |
| Audit trail | None | Yes | Limited | Field level |
| Where the data sits | With you | Abroad | Varies | Türkiye |
| Support language and hours | — | English, different time zone | Varies | Turkish, local hours |
The comparisons on this page are about product categories. For a specific product’s current feature list, please check its vendor’s own site.
First alternative
Spreadsheets and WhatsApp groups
Most schools start here, and for good reason: it is free, flexible and everyone knows how. The trouble comes with scale. When the same information lives in several files, it stops being clear which one is right, and reconciling the plan with what actually happened becomes somebody’s permanent job.
Where it works
- One aircraft and a handful of students — when the record volume fits in one person’s head
- The first months, when there is no software budget at all
- A way of working that is still changing every week
Where it struggles
- When two people edit the same file at once
- When “how many hours has this student flown” needs an immediate answer
- When an audit asks who changed a record
- When an expired medical needs catching while the plan is being built
Second alternative
Imported flight school software
These are mature products, developed for years, with wide scope. But most are built around US Part 141 or EASA practice. For a school operating in Türkiye that means bending the product to fit your way of working — sometimes possible, sometimes not.
Where it works
- Schools running EASA syllabi and taking international students
- Teams that work in English
- When invoicing and student billing must live in the software
Where it struggles
- When a Turkish interface and Turkish output are required
- When the paper flight plan must print in the SHGM format
- When local communication habits such as WhatsApp matter
- When data must stay in Türkiye
- When you need support in your own working hours
Third alternative
General-purpose planning and CRM tools
Calendars, project tools and CRMs handle the visual side of planning well. What they do not know are the aviation rules: whether an aircraft is cleared for a given exercise, whether a medical is valid, the currency interval, the weight and balance envelope. Teaching those rules to a general tool usually costs about as much as building software.
Where it works
- When aircraft booking is all you need
- When training records already live in another system
Where it struggles
- When syllabus progress must be derived automatically from flight time
- When eligibility rules must be checked at save time
- When you need a record chain you can defend in an audit
Our difference
The difference, in five points
Rather than claiming to be better, these describe exactly what we do differently.
-
Built around how it works here
The product came out of a working Turkish flight school. The paper flight plan format, the duty and signature row, the exercise codes, the SHT-FCL certificate fields — all designed that way from the start rather than adapted later.
-
Rules checked at save time
Conflict, currency and rest rules run when the plan is saved, not on a report screen. Mistakes are not found later; they cannot be entered in the first place.
-
Your forms stay your forms
You set the fields, options and ordering of the evaluation form. You are not made to fit a preset template.
-
Notifications over WhatsApp
Published plans and reminders land where people actually look. No extra subscription and no per-message charge.
-
Your data stays in Türkiye, and stays yours
Servers sit in a data centre in Türkiye, so data never leaves the country. You can export all of it whenever you want, and it is handed back as Excel files and a database backup if you leave.
To be honest
When you should not choose us
Working with the wrong customer is bad for both sides. In these cases another solution is a better fit.
- If your first need is invoicing and collections — the finance side is not the product’s focus, and we would suggest running it alongside your accounting software.
- If you deliver airline type rating training — the product is built around general aviation and ATO training practice.
- If you are looking for maintenance and technical records (CAMO) — the fleet module tracks eligibility and utilisation, not maintenance records.
- If your team is not ready to use software — like any system, this one needs consistent data entry; what is not entered cannot be reported.
FAQ
Most asked
Can we migrate from a foreign product?
How long does moving from spreadsheets take?
Can we run both systems in parallel for a while?
See it with your own data
We set up a demo account with your aircraft list and your syllabus. Build your own daily plan in it, then decide.
No setup fee, no commitment. We usually get back to you the same week.