AI is everywhere in aviation right now. Most of it sounds impressive. Very little of it actually works at scale.

In this episode of the Iron Bird Podcast, Dan Harris sits down with Co-Founder and Chairman of FL3XX Paolo Sommariva, one of the few operators who has lived on both sides of the problem. From launching a regional airline in Europe, to building an air taxi concept before its time, to now leading one of the most widely integrated operations platforms in business aviation.

Paolo breaks down what actually breaks when aviation tries to digitize. Why software adoption fails more from human fear than technical limits. Why automated quoting is inevitable. And how AI is already reshaping flight operations quietly, long before the hype catches up.

This is not a future-gazing conversation. It’s a grounded look at what operators can implement today, what they should stop doing immediately, and what the next 1–3 years will realistically demand from aviation businesses that want to survive.

✈️ Key Topics Covered

• Paolo’s path from air taxi and regional airline ventures to building FL3XX
• Why digitizing flight ops fails more from process and change resistance than tech
• FL3XX as an ops platform and why integrations matter
• Automated quoting, email parsing, and reducing manual quote workload
• Availability logic: crew legality, maintenance, airport constraints, and dispatch realities
• What AI is actually useful for today vs what’s still hype
• How natural language reporting changes ops and pricing decisions
• What operators should prioritize in the next 1–3 years to stay competitive

🔍 Why This Episode Matters

Aviation doesn’t suffer from a lack of technology.

It suffers from fragmented systems, outdated workflows, and fear of changing habits that “mostly work.”

Paolo explains why:

• Manual quoting is already a liability

• Scheduling failures are data problems, not people problems

• AI succeeds only when it removes repetitive work, not decision-making accountability

• Operators who ignore automation will not fail loudly, they’ll fade quietly

If you operate aircraft, manage sales, dispatch trips, or make platform decisions, this episode gives you a realistic framework for where aviation tech is actually heading.

🎧 Listen to the Episode

Catch the full conversation on the Iron Bird Podcast and hear how aviation software is being rebuilt from the inside out.

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