A request should let you answer in minutes. If it does not, the intermediary has passed you their work. Here is what ours carries and where the gaps genuinely remain.
What always arrives
Aerodrome, not region. Drake Bay at 83.5 nautical miles from San José, not «Osa». The translation from what the passenger wrote to a field happens before you see it.
A specific date and a time window. Not «in March».
Passenger count, adults and minors separately, because weight changes the category.
Baggage in items and dimensions. Boards, dive gear and child seats take far more room than they weigh.
And the price expectation already set. We show a "from" price per route; the final fare depends on the date, the group and the baggage, and is confirmed in writing before booking. The passenger knows the aircraft is quoted whole before you are involved.
What you will still sometimes need to ask
Three things, and being ready for them shortens the exchange:
Exact weights, when the group is near a category boundary. A twelve-seat field answer changes with six passengers versus four.
Waiting or overnight. We quote waiting time and aircraft overnights at the destination: tell us whether you return the same day or the aircraft waits, and we include it in the price. Whether the aircraft returns empty or holds the day is the single largest swing in what the job is worth to you.
And special cargo. Surfboards are common enough to be anticipated; a wheelchair, a coffin, an instrument case or livestock are not, and each changes the answer.
Ask about these early rather than at confirmation. A detail that surfaces the day before turns a straightforward job into a scramble, and the passenger rarely understood it mattered.
What a good reply contains
Availability, rate, and any condition — in one message.
Not «yes, let me check the crew». Not a rate without the waiting policy. One message the intermediary can pass straight to the passenger, because every round trip adds hours and the competing operator is not adding them.
If the answer is no, say no in the same message and say why briefly. «Aircraft committed that day» takes ten seconds and keeps the next request coming.
The reason matters more than operators assume. «Committed» and «does not fit the field» lead to different next requests, and an intermediary who knows which it was stops sending you the wrong ones.
The one thing that genuinely cannot be pre-filtered
Whether your aircraft can do it on that day. We match against your sheet, but the sheet is a category, not a performance calculation. The specific aircraft is assigned on confirmation, based on passenger count, baggage and the destination field.
Tortuguero at 53.4 nautical miles, Tamarindo at 97.1 — both admit a range of categories, and whether yours goes with this load at this temperature is your arithmetic, not ours.
We would rather send you a request you decline than pre-filter using a number we do not have.
The alternative — guessing at performance to spare you an email — would silently remove you from jobs you could have done, and neither of us would ever know it happened.
The measure worth watching
Time from request received to firm answer sent. Nothing else you control moves your win rate as much, and it costs nothing to improve. Operators we bring on evidence current certification, insurance and fleet documentation before receiving a first assignment.
Frequently asked questions
What always comes with a request?
Aerodrome, date and time window, passenger split, baggage in items and dimensions, and a price expectation already set.
What will I still need to ask?
Exact weights near a category boundary, waiting or overnight, and special cargo.
What should my reply contain?
Availability, rate and any condition in one message the intermediary can pass straight on.
Should I reply if the answer is no?
Yes, in the same message with a brief reason. It takes ten seconds and keeps the next request coming.
Why not pre-filter by performance?
Because the sheet is a category, not a performance calculation for that load and temperature. That arithmetic is yours.
Does the reason for a refusal matter?
More than operators assume. "Committed" and "does not fit the field" lead to different next requests.
What single measure matters most?
Time from request received to firm answer sent.
Let us talk
Operators we bring on evidence current certification, insurance and fleet documentation before receiving a first assignment.