Sergey Petrossov joins Aero Ventures in private jet sales tech play

Sergey Petrossov, who built JetSmarter to a billion-dollar valuation by his 28th birthday, before the company encountered turbulence and was sold to Vista Global, has joined Aero Ventures.

Aero Ventures is focused on the trading and financing of pre-owned private jets.

Aero Ventures was founded last year by former Jet Edge CEO Bill Papariella and Chief Commercial Officer Jonah Adler, following their departure from Vista Global.

The announcement coincides with the launch of a new Aero Ventures marketplace for pre-owned jets.

The trio of executives believes they can change that part of the business by providing more accurate information, delivering it in real-time, and doing so dynamically.

Aero Ventures is calling its new platform “the aviation world’s equivalent of Zillow, Edmunds, Carfax, and Carvana combined.”

It promises “the new standard for private jet transactions — marrying deep industry expertise with Silicon Valley-style innovation.”

Aero Ventures Marketplace

Petrossov has helped Aero Ventures build a marketplace that enables buyers and sellers to access information instantly and create dynamic scenarios.

Global Jet Capital projects at least $17.5 billion in annual pre-owned private jet sales over the next three years.

Papariella says, “Aero Ventures was built to deliver advisory that goes beyond the transaction — uniting deep operational expertise, strategic capital, and leading-edge technology in a seamless platform that optimizes balance sheets and transforms the private jet ownership experience.”

Petrossov adds, “We digitized private aviation with JetSmarter and scaled it further with XO. Now, with Aero Ventures, we’re doing the same for aircraft ownership — making trading transparent, fast, and exciting.”

In addition to working as a broker, Aero Ventures also provides financing and will purchase aircraft.

The company states that in many cases, it can provide a firm offer within 48 hours.

Papariella and Petrossov

Vista Global bought JetSmarter in 2019 and Jet Edge in 2022.

Jet Edge had been a key vendor for JetSmarter flights.

It also operated several private jets owned by the jet-sharing flight provider.

Petrossov served as Chief Growth & Digital Officer at Vista Global and XO President until his departure.

Papariella departed Vista Global in 2023.

He had guided Jet Edge to become one of the largest private jet charter operators in the U.S.

JetSmarter gained a billion-dollar valuation with over 10,000 active members by 2017 in a bid to democratize private aviation.

In some cases, members paid under $10,000 per year.

In return, they gained all-they-could-fly seats and empty legs on private jets.

First-time private flyers racked up dozens of free flights.

By 2018, the company had increased prices and introduced more expensive membership options.

At the same time, it pivoted to a model where members had to pay for most seats that were previously free.

It was then hit with multiple lawsuits from unhappy members.

Some alleged they had been promised the cheap deals in perpetuity in exchange for being early joiners. Others complained that terms were changed shortly after joining.

The lawsuits were settled in a 2019 class action arbitration settlement.

JetSmarter had relied heavily on technology and an app to attract new users to private aviation.

They were able to scan available empty legs and seats, booking digitally in real-time.

There were 668,000 registered users of its app at one point, according to an investor presentation.

Real-Time Data

The new Aero Ventures marketplace enables UHNW buyers and sellers of private jets to view listed and off-market aircraft, see pricing analysis based on real-time market data, and dynamically plot out various ownership and market scenarios.

Users can run various scenarios dynamically without having to interact with a broker each time they want to look.

It is targeting transactions of $10 million or more.