Surf Air Mobility (SRFM) Earnings Call Transcript

Image source: The Motley Fool.

DATE

Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. ET

CALL PARTICIPANTS

• Chief Executive Officer — Deanna White
• Chief Financial Officer — Oliver W. Reeves
• Cofounder — Sudhin Shahani

TAKEAWAYS

• Revenue -- $26.4 million in the fourth quarter within the guidance range of $25.5 million to $27.5 million, representing a 9% sequential decrease driven by a 16% decline in scheduled service revenue, partially offset by an 8% increase in on-demand charter revenue.
• Year-over-year Q4 Revenue Change -- Fourth-quarter revenue declined 6%, with a 19% decrease in scheduled service revenue, partially offset by a 36% rise in on-demand charter revenue.
• Full Year Revenue -- $106.6 million met guidance of “exceeding $105 million,” reflecting an 11% decrease attributed to a 15% decline in scheduled service, partially offset by a 3% increase in on-demand charter revenue.
• Adjusted EBITDA Loss (Q4) -- Nearly $8 million, within the guidance of $8 million to $6.5 million; improved 19% year over year but included a $1.1 million increase in corporate-level costs compared to the prior quarter.
• Full-Year Adjusted EBITDA Loss -- $41.7 million, a 5% year-over-year improvement from $44.1 million, primarily due to exiting unprofitable routes and better operational performance.
• Net Debt Reduction -- Decreased 47% to $74 million from $139 million at year-end, with a $48 million convertible note conversion contributing to the improvement.
• Operational Metrics -- Controllable completion factor rose to 98% from 89% in the prior year; on-time departures improved to 72% from 62%, and on-time arrivals increased to 81% from 74%.
• Guidance: 2026 Revenue -- Management expects $128 million to $138 million, reflecting 20%-30% growth, with revenue growth weighted toward the back half of the year.
• Guidance: 2026 Adjusted EBITDA Loss -- Management projects a loss of $40 million to $50 million, reflecting continued investment in strategic priorities and ongoing margin improvement initiatives.
• Guidance: Q1 2026 -- Revenue expected between $24 million and $26 million; adjusted EBITDA loss forecasted between $15.5 million and $13.5 million, with no anticipated revenue from Surf OS included.
• Airline Operations Profitability -- Achieved full-year profitability on an adjusted EBITDA basis, meeting prior guidance and attributed to improved operational practices and cost controls.
• On-Demand Charter Performance -- Annual revenue and flight margin growth supported by a mix shift to long-haul trips, larger aircraft, and improved sourcing enabled by technology initiatives.
• Surf OS Technology -- Five-year exclusive partnership with Palantir for Part 135 operator software; successful launch of new scheduling, maintenance, mobile, and CRM modules during the period.
• Commercialization Timeline -- Surf OS expected to generate meaningful commercial revenue beginning in the second half of 2026, with active engagement across 17 operators in beta programs and pending enterprise contract discussions.
• Beta Technologies Partnership -- Announced firm order for 25 electric aircraft, with options for 75 more; expected acceleration of electric aircraft deployment timeline and exclusive MRO agreement in Hawaii.
• Expected Operating Cost Reduction from Electric Aircraft -- CEO White stated, “We anticipate that there will be 30% more improvement in operating costs,” attributed to reduced fuel and maintenance requirements.
• Hawaii Strategic Investment -- Over $22 million committed to infrastructure, new aircraft, and operational improvements; Hawaii serves as anchor market for electric aircraft introduction under the Localei Airlines brand.
• Shift in Electrification Capital Allocation -- Management will no longer invest $50 million to $100 million in the Caravan electrification program, reallocating focus to software and partner-driven initiatives.
• New Business Lines -- Powered by SURF On Demand and SURF On Demand Cargo initiatives began generating profitable revenue, expanding the on-demand segment and supporting raised guidance.
• Exclusive MRO Facility -- Surf Air Mobility Inc. to operate the factory-authorized service center for Beta electric aircraft in Hawaii, with the possibility to extend the designation to other regions.

Need a quote from a Motley Fool analyst? Email pr@fool.com

RISKS

• Sequential and year-over-year revenue declines resulted from exiting unprofitable routes, with scheduled service revenue falling 16% sequentially and 19% year over year in Q4, as noted by CFO Reeves.
• Full-year revenue dropped 11%, attributed by management to strategic route exits, which may signal ongoing challenges in achieving top-line growth from scheduled services.
• Adjusted EBITDA loss remains substantial at $8 million for Q4 and $41.7 million for the year, with 2026 guidance indicating continued losses of $40 million to $50 million as investments ramp up.
• Revenue from Surf OS commercialization and Beta aircraft deployment is dependent on successful certification, adoption, and delayed revenue realization until at least the second half of 2026, as CEO White confirmed.

SUMMARY

Surf Air Mobility Inc. (NYSE:SRFM) reported full-year adjusted EBITDA profitability in airline operations while overall revenue declined due to a strategic exit of unprofitable scheduled routes. Management committed over $22 million to Hawaii for electric aircraft deployment, secured a firm order with Beta Technologies for 25 electric aircraft, and established an exclusive Palantir software partnership targeting the Part 135 segment. On-demand charter business demonstrated revenue growth and margin expansion, driven by technology integration and the launch of Broker OS and cargo products. Guidance for 2026 targets a 20%-30% revenue increase to $128 million-$138 million, with the strongest contributions expected in the latter half via on-demand and initial Surf OS commercialization.

• Beta Technologies partnership is set to accelerate electric aircraft introduction, with management aiming to deploy both cargo and passenger variants as certification allows and to leverage exclusivity for MRO operations in Hawaii.
• CEO White stated that adopting Beta aircraft “will provide us mitigating that risk in the future when we have them” in reference to fuel and maintenance cost volatility.
• Management has redirected capital away from in-house electrification of the Caravan platform, instead prioritizing software and leveraging external OEM progress to maintain first mover advantage.
• Five-year exclusive deal with Palantir enables Surf OS development for other operators, OEMs, and enterprise clients within the Part 135 ecosystem, with anticipated revenue gains in 2026 as beta trials convert to commercial contracts.
• Powered by SURF On Demand is driving on-demand charter revenue gains by expanding independent broker participation and integrating Broker OS productivity tools, with a pipeline of third-party brokers in active onboarding.

INDUSTRY GLOSSARY

• Part 135: FAA regulatory framework permitting certificate holders to conduct non-scheduled air charter services including commuter and on-demand operations.
• CTOL (Conventional Take-Off and Landing): Aircraft capable of standard airport takeoff and landing operations, referenced as the initial variant for Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s Beta Technologies partnership.
• VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing): Aircraft designed to take off and land vertically without a runway, referenced as a future product class in the Beta Technologies order pipeline.
• MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul): Specialized facility or business activity focused on maintaining and servicing aircraft fleets, central to Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s strategic partnership with Beta Technologies in Hawaii.
• Broker OS: Surf Air Mobility Inc.’s proprietary software platform for independent third-party brokers to manage charter transactions and drive operational efficiency within the on-demand charter market.
• Surf OS: The company’s integrated, Palantir-powered software suite for airline and charter operations, targeted for external commercialization beginning in 2026.
• EIPP (FAA Electric Integrated Partnership Program): FAA certification process to expedite approval for electric aircraft models, benefiting Beta Technologies and Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s deployment timeline.
• Localei Airlines: Brand under which Surf Air Mobility Inc. operates interisland scheduled flights in Hawaii, slotted as the initial market for electric aircraft introduction.

Full Conference Call Transcript

Deanna White, Chief Executive Officer, and Oliver W. Reeves, Chief Financial Officer. Our earnings release can be found on the SEC EDGAR website and on our Surf Air Mobility Inc. Investor Relations page at investors.surfair.com. During this call, we will discuss our outlook and expectations for future performance. These forward-looking statements may be preceded by words such as “we expect,” “we believe,” “we anticipate,” or other similar statements. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, and our actual results could differ materially from the views expressed today. Some of these risks have been set forth in our earnings release and in our periodic reports filed with the SEC. During today's call, we will present both GAAP and non-GAAP measures.

Additional disclosures regarding non-GAAP measures, including a reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures, are included in the earnings release we issued earlier today, posted on the Surf Air Mobility Inc. Investor Relations website and in our filings with the SEC. I will now turn the call over to Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s CEO, Deanna White. Deanna?

Deanna White: Thank you, Sam, and thank you everyone for joining us. At the beginning of 2025, we were in the midst of transforming our company financially, operationally, and strategically. The investments we made in our key priorities were straightforward: strengthen the core business by improving reliability and profitability in our airline operations, recalibrate the on-demand charter business, and develop our Surf OS software. We delivered against that plan, demonstrating successful execution against our strategies. I think that is best exemplified by having now met or exceeded our revenue and adjusted EBITDA guidance for eight consecutive quarters. Today, we are no longer resetting. We are pivoting to growth.

We are backing that ambition by increasing 2026 revenue guidance by 20% to 30% compared to the prior year, underscoring our platform opportunity and our conviction in delivering it. This revenue guidance does not include the early stages of electric aircraft deployment, as we expect our recently announced partnership with Beta Technologies to contribute to revenue growth and operating efficiencies in 2027. In 2025, we raised over $100 million in equity to substantially reduce our overall cost of capital and lower our net debt. This strengthened financial position gives us the flexibility to move beyond stabilization and toward growth.

Today, we operate a regional airline and on-demand charter business safely, reliably, and efficiently, and have been building a digital infrastructure equipped with AI-enabled software tools powered by Palantir. These efforts provide the foundation for our business platform ambition that will enable the next generation of advanced air mobility. To set the stage, aviation is entering a structural inflection point. Electrified aircraft nearing commercial readiness and AI-enabled software will soon shift both the economics and operating requirements of flying. These converging technologies will stimulate massive new demand, but the industry remains severely fragmented, with operators, brokers, owners, and manufacturers still relying on disconnected technology solutions that are unprepared to manage the greater operational and regulatory complexity, intensifying the challenges further.

Success in this next phase of aviation will be shaped not by individual airlines or OEMs as in the past, but by a platform that integrates the ecosystem and increases alignment across it. Like all effective platforms, Surf Air Mobility Inc. intends to benefit from dynamics between supply and demand, where improved access, reliability, and economics on one side make participation increasingly attractive on the other. Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s platform, enabled by a digital powered by Palantir, makes participation in the next generation of aviation simpler, safer, and more economically attractive over time for everyone.

We see a world where OEMs will introduce aircraft through our platform, operators will run fleets on Surf OS, pilots will build careers within the network, passengers will manage their travel with a trusted brand, regulators will rely on the platform's transparency and controls, and capital will flow through its infrastructure. While assets and operations remain distributed, the coordination standards and market dynamics will be governed centrally through the platform.

Our platform strategy is built on our strengths today: a nationwide commuter network of short-haul routes ready to showcase adoption of electric aircraft; a cohort of over 400-plus operator relationships developed within our on-demand charter business; proprietary Palantir-powered software built on live operations; partnerships with leading electric aircraft manufacturers, including Beta Technologies and Elektra, to bring new electric aircraft into service. We believe this combination of assets is singular in this industry and defines our platform advantage. In our airline operations, 2025 marked a dramatic step-change in operational performance. We made meaningful improvements in controllable completion rates and on-time departures and arrival metrics, each reaching all-time highs since becoming a public company.

These gains reflect better execution from our incredibly talented team along with increased digitalization of key processes across the airline. I would like to thank the team for their contribution to this milestone, which would not have been possible without their dedication to operational excellence. As a result, we achieved our guidance of profitability in our airline operations for the full year of 2025, defined as positive adjusted EBITDA. In our on-demand charter business, we focused not only on growth, but also margin expansion. We achieved both. Revenue increased while we saw incremental improvement to flight margins compared to the prior year.

The combination of better sourcing discipline, a mix shift to longer-haul trips with larger aircraft, and the adoption of our Surf OS technology helped us recalibrate the business. It is within our on-demand charter business that we expect to see the clearest near-term benefits of our platform becoming operationalized. We already saw this business expand meaningfully in 2025, especially in the second half of the year as our Surf OS tools helped us improve aircraft sourcing and broker productivity. We integrated two charter supply deals into our platform, giving us better economics and more control over aircraft inventory while guaranteeing distribution for our operating partner. In 2025, we launched two new strategic initiatives in our on-demand charter business.

The first, Powered by SURF On Demand, our tech-enabled program that equips independent third-party brokers with Broker OS and expands our on-demand charter team Salesforce. And the second, SURF On Demand Cargo, which expands our product offering into an additional segment of the aviation market. These programs began generating profitable revenue in 2025 and represent early proof points of our platform strategy in action. Surf OS remains a significant investment priority for us. Throughout 2025, we continued working with Palantir to power the core of Surf OS and integrate it across more parts of our organization.

We launched crew and aircraft scheduling tools, integrated our maintenance management system, enhanced mobile applications for pilots, and adopted CRM capabilities for our on-demand charter team. These tools are actively used within our business every day. At the same time, we continue to validate Surf OS with external operators and brokers, and secured multiple letters of intent for future adoption of our software products. To this end, we remain on track to begin commercializing Surf OS in 2026. The goal is to provide tools that improve efficiency, transparency, and asset utilization in a fragmented market that connects the ecosystem onto a shared digital infrastructure.

Our Hawaii operation and strategic partnerships are central to this next phase, and we are placing particular emphasis on that market as a proving ground for our platform in practice. The interisland network provides a practical environment to introduce electric aircraft technologies responsibly, with short flight distances, a concentrated geography, strong community engagement, and meaningful passenger volume. Hawaii is our strategic anchor market to demonstrate the impact of the transition to electric aircraft. We have increased our investment in Hawaii, operating under the brand Localei Airlines, and have committed to investing over $22 million into our Hawaii infrastructure with new planes entering service in 2026, updated lounges, and improved processes.

We strengthened leadership locally, improved operational reliability, and aligned our fleet network for long-term operational stability. This strategic commitment to Hawaii is further shown by the work we are doing in partnership with Beta Technologies. This week, we secured a strategic partnership with Beta Technologies to be the first operator to launch commercial electric aircraft passenger flights in Hawaii. As part of the strategic partnership, Surf Air Mobility Inc. will combine its operating expertise, existing passenger demand, and established airport infrastructure with Beta’s market-leading electric aircraft and charging capabilities. We have placed a firm fleet order for 25 Beta electric aircraft with an option for 75 more.

The order allows for delivery slots to be satisfied across Beta Technologies’ product portfolio, from cargo or passenger CTOL aircraft to VTOL variants, perfect for our existing commuter network and on-demand charter business. The order allows aircraft to be operated by us, leased to individual owners that manage their aircraft with Surf Air Mobility Inc., or operated by our on-demand charter partners, all stakeholders within our platform. We anticipate that the improved unit economics of Beta electric aircraft will lead to increased profitability in our scheduled service and on-demand charter businesses over time.

We have entered into another agreement with Beta Technologies that designates our planned maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility, once certified, as the exclusive factory-authorized service center for Beta electric aircraft in Hawaii with the ability to extend to other launch regions. Our ambition to become the leading MRO for electric aircraft will create a new and growing revenue stream for the company. Moreover, Beta Technologies has selected us as the launch operator for their passenger aircraft. Beta Technologies and Surf Air Mobility Inc. will co-market Beta electric aircraft and Surf Air Mobility Inc.'s operating software capabilities to other third-party Beta aircraft customers.

We aim to leverage this agreement to provide Beta Technologies customers with operational and aircraft management services across multiple mission profiles, including high-frequency short-haul scheduled passenger service, regional cargo operations, and on-demand charter flights. These announcements are concrete examples of the progress we are making toward implementing the industry’s platform solution and will directly support the early commercial deployment and broader market adoption of electric aircraft. Our broader electrification strategy has been to work with best-in-class aircraft manufacturers to achieve first mover advantage. Our partnership with Beta Technologies illustrates this approach, and we are working toward introducing Beta’s aircraft into commercial service beginning this year.

We believe that Hawaii, where we hold an early advantage, will be one of the first meaningful proof points in the United States and believe Beta Technologies has the aircraft to make it happen. These deliberate steps are designed to reduce risk, increase operational readiness, and position us to be the premier operator of electric aircraft. The Beta aircraft order is expected to enable deployment of electric aircraft in our network before our previously expected timeline of 2027. At the same time, we continue to believe there is a strong use case for an electric Caravan, particular in markets we fly today, such as Hawaii.

We believe the most efficient allocation of capital is to focus on providing software to support the development of electric aircraft. We continue to be in discussions with multiple partners across the value chain to advance the electric Caravan program utilizing the work we have accomplished and assets we have created. However, to be clear, we no longer intend to invest $50 million to $100 million for the Caravan electrification program. To summarize, what I have just described is Surf Air Mobility Inc. turning back to growth mode in 2026. I have laid out our vision showing how our strategic initiatives and areas of strength will increasingly work in tandem as a unified platform.

The outlook for this next year includes more partnerships, more electric aircraft collaborations, more supply agreements, and more integration and broader rollout of our Surf OS technology across the ecosystem. Over time, we will align the key stakeholders around our platform, coordinate more of the operational financial transactions, and capture an expanding share of the industry's activity. We enter 2026 in a stronger position than at any point in our recent history, seeking to enable an industry at the beginning of structural expansion, and we are intensely focused on turning that position into tangible value for our customers, our partners, and our investors.

With that, I will turn the call over to Oliver to discuss our fourth quarter and full year 2025 results and our 2026 guidance.

Oliver W. Reeves: Thank you, Sam. In my remarks today, I will discuss the results of our fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, and our outlook for the first quarter and fiscal year ending December 31, 2026. To begin, here are some annual 2025 highlights. First, we achieved full-year profitability in our airline operations, defined as positive adjusted EBITDA. This milestone was reached by driving operational improvements, reducing maintenance complexity, and enhancing overall cost efficiency. We invested in leadership talent at all levels of the organization with aviation expertise that achieved significant results. Second, we successfully recalibrated our on-demand charter business model, improving flight margins year over year.

We accomplished these achievements through improved sourcing, the introduction of new charter products, and an increase in long-haul flying with larger aircraft. In 2025, we completed the full internal deployment of Broker OS, resulting in improved efficiencies and cost savings. In the fourth quarter, we launched two new programs: Powered by SURF On Demand, which expands the company's sales force by providing Broker OS to independent third-party brokers, and SURF On Demand Cargo, which expands our product strategy within the aviation market. Third, for our Surf OS initiative, we extended our partnership with Palantir by announcing a five-year exclusive agreement to develop software solutions for Part 135 stakeholders, coupled with a teaming agreement to pursue larger enterprise opportunities.

Finally, we optimized our capital structure, raising debt and equity to both invest in our business and strengthen our balance sheet. As a result, net debt decreased 47%, from $139 million at December 31, 2024 to $74 million at December 31, 2025. This decrease in net debt also benefited from the conversion of $48 million of convertible notes, inclusive of interest. Now let me turn more specifically to the fourth quarter and full year results. Revenue and adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter met our guidance range. This is the eighth consecutive quarter in which the company either met or exceeded guidance, demonstrating continued and deliberate execution against our transformation plan.

For the fourth quarter 2025, revenue of $26.4 million was within our guidance range of $25.5 million to $27.5 million, a 9% decrease sequentially from the third quarter driven by a 16% decrease in scheduled service revenue resulting from the exit of unprofitable routes, partially offset by an 8% increase in on-demand charter revenue. On a year-over-year basis, fourth quarter revenue decreased 6%, driven by a 19% decrease in scheduled service revenue partially offset by a 36% increase in on-demand charter revenue.

Full year 2025 revenue of $106.6 million met our previously raised guidance of revenue exceeding $105 million, an 11% decrease when compared with full year 2024 revenue, driven by a 15% decrease in scheduled service revenue partially offset by a 3% increase in on-demand charter revenue.

The drivers of both the sequential and year-over-year decreases in fourth quarter and full year revenue were the continued exit of unprofitable routes, partially offset by improved operational metrics in our scheduled service operations, with controllable completion factors for Q4 2025 improving to 98%, compared to 96% for Q3 2025 and 89% for Q4 2024; an increase in on-demand charter revenue driven by a shift in mix to larger aircraft and international flights; and the positive impact of our Broker OS software and broker productivity. Our adjusted EBITDA loss, just under $8 million for the fourth quarter 2025, was within our guidance range of $8 million to $6.5 million.

Compared with the fourth quarter 2024, adjusted EBITDA loss improved by 19%, the result of our continued focus on cost management. Adjusted EBITDA loss compared to the same quarter in 2024 increased by approximately $1.1 million due to a slightly higher mix of corporate-level costs. Full year 2025 adjusted EBITDA loss of $41.7 million was a 5% improvement over the 2024 adjusted EBITDA loss of $44.1 million. This reduction in adjusted EBITDA loss year over year reflects the exits of unprofitable routes, the benefits of our significant operational improvements, and the positive impact of improved on-demand charter margins. Airline operations were profitable, defined as positive adjusted EBITDA, in line with our full year guidance.

Our controllable completion factor increased to 98% in 2025 from 89% in 2024. Over the same period, on-time departures improved to 72% from 62%, and on-time arrivals improved to 81% from 74%. Improvements in these key operating metrics represent a tangible return on capital deployed to address prior operating challenges. Looking forward, we are entering 2026 with strong momentum. Surf Air Mobility Inc. is positioned to lead and enable aviation's next structural transformation. 2026 marks our transition from operator to platform and the start of the expansion phase of our transformation plan. Now let me turn to the discussion of our outlook for 2026. 2026 marks the beginning of our return to growth.

As Deanna mentioned earlier, the outlook for 2026 includes more partnerships, more electric aircraft collaborations, more supply agreements, and more internal integration and a broader commercial rollout of our Surf OS technology. For the full year 2026, we anticipate revenue to be in the range of $128 million to $138 million, and adjusted EBITDA loss to be within a range of $40 million to $50 million. Our revenue guidance range of 20% to 30% year-over-year revenue growth for fiscal year 2026 contemplates accelerating growth in our on-demand charter business and partial-year revenue contribution for Surf OS. Because of these dynamics, revenue growth will be heavily weighted to the back half of 2026.

Our 2026 adjusted EBITDA loss guidance reflects significant investments in strategic initiatives, including the continued development and commercial rollout of Surf OS, partially offset by the continued efforts to improve the profitability of our scheduled service and on-demand charter business. Despite these investments, we expect our adjusted EBITDA loss and margins to improve each quarter on a comparable year-over-year basis driven by revenue growth and a continued focus on cost management. For the first quarter of 2026, we anticipate revenue to be in the range of $24 million to $26 million and adjusted EBITDA loss to be within a range of $15.5 million and $13.5 million.

Revenue guidance for the first quarter of 2026 does not reflect any revenue contribution for Surf OS. The increase in adjusted EBITDA loss reflects our investment in strategic initiatives and the continued development and upcoming commercial rollout of Surf OS. Now let me turn the call back to Deanna for some brief closing thoughts.

Deanna White: 2025 marked the year we transformed our company operationally, financially, and strategically. Today, we are a respected short-haul flight provider serving regional commuters, on-demand charter customers, and cargo services. We are transitioning from an airline-first operating model to a platform-centric business spanning regional, private, and advanced air mobility. We spent a decade building a commuter airline and on-demand charter business known for safety, reliability, and customer service. Meanwhile, numerous companies have invested billions over the same decade in electric aircraft now reaching final certification stages. The aviation industry is entering an inflection point as electric aircraft mission-built for short-haul flying, and AI-enabled software shift operating requirements, efficiencies, and economics.

Success will not be shaped by individual airlines or OEMs, but by platforms that integrate the ecosystem. 2026 represents a pivotal year for Surf Air Mobility Inc. Our long-term ambition to become the platform that enables the next generation of flight is at our doorstep. We believe that our Surf OS software represents sustainable competitive advantage that will anchor our platform and position us at the center of the transforming industry. Having privileged access to a larger and more diverse array of knowledge flows better positions us to shape these flows. When you are in the center of flows, small moves smartly made can set very big things in motion.

With that, let me turn it over to the operator for the Q&A portion of the call. Operator?

Operator: Thank you. At this time, I would like to remind everyone, in order to ask a question, press star and then the number one on your telephone keypad. We will now open for questions.

Operator: And our first question comes from the line of Amit Dayal with H.C. Wainwright. Your line is open.

Amit Dayal: Thank you. Good afternoon, everyone. I appreciate you taking my questions. Congrats on all the progress, guys. With respect to the Surf OS spend and commercial rollout, could you clarify what is being spent on the software development, product development, and what is being potentially spent on just building the sales pipeline?

Deanna White: Sure. Thanks, Amit, and thanks for participating and giving us a question and the interest you have in our company. You know, Surf OS remains a significant investment priority for us. We have an operating model in which we are now evolving to execute a go-to-market strategy. We first are starting with our Broker OS product. We spoke about how our on-demand team has launched that through a Powered by Surf OS program in which we equip independent third-party brokers with the tech-enabled software tool of Broker OS. We have seen that be very effective. We are already seeing that have profitable revenue when it was launched last year, and we are commercializing that further and growing that.

It is going to be a big contributor of our on-demand business this year, and is supporting why we guided to a higher revenue target for 2026. Now we are also still working with 17 operators in a closed beta, and we are evolving how that go-to-market strategy will work using their feedback, not just on the tool, but how we could potentially commercialize that. Thirdly, we are targeting enterprise clients with enterprise solutions. That leverages the five-year teaming agreement that we have with Palantir to develop solutions for enterprise customers with them within the Part 135 industry. We have exclusivity there.

And we also intend to monetize the Surf OS tools that we already are using ourselves to enterprise clients and also develop customized tools for them. We are currently in discussions with various potential clients including not just operators, but also OEMs within the industry. The bulk of the revenues that we are going to get this year from commercializing Surf OS is going to occur in the second half of the year. We are deliberately using a very deliberate, thoughtful go-to-market strategy on Surf OS, making sure that our products meet the requirements of the industry and our clients, and hope to see in the future years that segment of our business truly take off and grow.

Amit Dayal: Thank you, Deanna. And then, with respect to the Beta partnership, is any of that going to come through in 2026? Or are these aircraft purchases, etc., happening in periods like 2027 and beyond? Just any clarity on how the electric aircraft are going to be incorporated into your fleet and timelines for these developments?

Deanna White: Sure. The Beta aircraft order is very unique. We have the ability to satisfy the deliveries across their entire product portfolio, which includes cargo, passenger, a CTOL variant, and then a VTOL variant. The CTOL variant is the one that they can certify the soonest. It is the one they are going to be using in the EIPP program. Certification timeline is obviously the biggest hurdle, and the FAA EIPP program that they just announced selections for this week is going to expedite the certification process for those who were selected. Beta is a great partner. They actually were selected in seven of the eight applications.

The benefits of that is they will be able to certify the aircraft a lot quicker, even potentially up to a year sooner. We cannot take deliveries and put them into full commercial service until the aircraft is certified. But we have plans to start with the CTOL cargo and move to the passenger variant. And the CTOL can use existing regional airports. It does not require the vertiport infrastructure, and so we will be able to launch a commercial service sooner.

We also intend, even though our company's application in Hawaii with Beta was not selected for the EIPP program, we still intend with Beta in 2026 to do demo flights, to start a trial of the cargo version of the CTOL. To begin doing that in 2026 in anticipation of the certification of that aircraft first. And we, on the airline operations side, will actually begin with cargo services that will generate revenue and then move to passenger, using the CTOL and then later the VTOL once it is certified.

Amit Dayal: Thank you, Deanna. Just one more on the Beta side. I do not know if you can share this at this point, but any color on the improvement in economics from the Beta aircraft versus these legacy aircraft? Could you share any details on how adopting the Beta electric aircraft can improve economics for Surf Air Mobility Inc.?

Deanna White: Sure. We anticipate that there will be 30% more improvement in operating costs. Where that will come from is two areas: fuel and also maintenance. Right now, with fuel and the higher fuel prices, these electric aircraft will provide us mitigating that risk in the future when we have them. But incidentally, we today run our business on the Caravan, which is one of the most fuel-efficient, much more fuel efficient than a jet or even a commercial airline operator. Our fuel costs are a lot smaller a percentage of our total revenue than a large commercial airline or a jet have.

So we are very fortunate that we are able to have an entire fleet of Caravans that are very fuel efficient. We also will benefit from the maintenance. Interestingly enough, on an annual basis, a traditional Caravan has to be taken down for routine inspections 24 days out of the calendar year, and the new electric Beta aircraft will only have to be taken out of service for two days for maintenance in a year. That improved productivity to be able to have those planes in the air flying and generating revenue is also a big benefit to us for our future business and our operating profits.

Amit Dayal: Got it. And just maybe one for Oliver. Oliver, maybe at the end of 2026, how will the balance sheet look? Any sense of where cash and debt levels could be post your investments in Salesforce and other initiatives?

Oliver W. Reeves: Yeah, but it is very difficult for me to comment on that. But here is what I will say. As we mentioned in our earnings release and our remarks this afternoon, we are truly pivoting back to growth, and that is why we have guidance within up 20% to 30% compared to last year. And our guidance of our EBITDA loss of $50 million to $40 million reflects significant investments that we have announced such as the investment in Hawaii, for example, and a very small part of our investments are actually—so they truly do flow through that number. We believe these investments will generate significant ROI, and it will create shareholder value.

With regard to the recent announcement that we made around Beta, we intend to utilize the strong relationships that we have with lessors, something we have been building over time, to get those leased. So we do not expect a lot of impact from that. And obviously, as Deanna just mentioned, they will significantly improve our profitability. So we will continue to opportunistically look to refine our balance sheet over time to address these potential investments that we need to make as market conditions allow, to accelerate our growth plans.

Amit Dayal: Thank you, Oliver. That is all I have, appreciate it.

Operator: And our next question comes from the line of David Joseph Storms with Stonegate. Your line is open.

David Joseph Storms: Good evening, everyone, and thanks for taking my questions. Wanted to start with airline operations. Great to see that it was full-year positive on an adjusted EBITDA basis. In order for that to become maybe operating-level positive, what will that take? Is that volume growth? Is there more room here to exit unprofitable routes? Are there cost takeouts? Maybe just how does that look?

Deanna White: Thanks, David. Thank you for your interest in our company. We see the continued adding of technology from our Surf OS platform that will provide additional offer optimization for our benefits and reducing our costs in that business. We continue to sustain the high levels of operational efficiency that the team developed with all their hard work and their transformation from the prior year. But really, technology and the insertion of the technology and the tools that we are making are really going to do a lot in the near term. And in the future, the adoption of electric aircraft are going to be the biggest thing with 30% operating margins improving in the use of that business.

I previously, in the original beginning part of the remarks, talked about also in the airlines operations additional markets that we are going to be going in. We are going to go into the cargo market using these Beta aircraft, and we are also going to be the factory-authorized MRO in the aircraft space. The Beta aircraft agreement allows for us to first be their exclusive factory-authorized center for them in Hawaii with the opportunity in future launch areas. And we have a goal to become, in addition, a premier MRO for the electric aircraft that are all coming to fruition in the near future.

And so that will be another opportunity for us to have additional revenue streams and additional profitability in airline operations.

David Joseph Storms: That is great color. I appreciate that. Maybe sticking with the Beta partnership, you mentioned in your prepared remarks that you have the optionality to move with them, to say, move geographies, etc. I know Hawaii is kind of a unique situation and serves as a great testing ground. But thinking beyond Hawaii, what seems like the logical next steps for geographic expansion?

Deanna White: We do not necessarily want to share what our geographical expansion targets are. It is a competitive advantage to know what we are doing there. But there are a lot of pieces of our current network that we operate where we can easily adopt the electric aircraft from this order, not just in our scheduled passengers, but also in a cargo service. Obviously, we already have an existing network you can more quickly adopt these aircraft into, as opposed to standing up something from scratch in a new targeted market. But we do also have new targeted markets that we do not operate in today that we intend to use these aircraft for.

An interesting thing: our company has flown the past decade millions of passengers, millions of miles. We have done the short-haul routes that all this new technology in electric aircraft needs to have, and so you can more quickly and efficiently adopt electric aircraft when you already have a network to place the aircraft in. So we are really excited about the Beta partnership, the order, and what it means for us to be a leader in adopting within our network and within the industry.

David Joseph Storms: That is a very fair answer. Please do not let me ask you to give away your Krabby Patty sauce there. Turning to maybe the SURF On Demand, would love to get your thoughts about maybe any early signs of adoption there. Are you seeing it take a similar trajectory as your previous launches? Just maybe anything else you are seeing there, early returns-wise, I know it is still early.

Deanna White: Are you talking about early launch of our Powered by On Demand program? That program, similar to Compass used in the real estate market, that platform allows independent brokers to join that program and get the tech-enabled Broker OS software that helps them more efficiently and quickly close business transactions in the on-demand market, so they can create volume a lot quicker. We have already seen, when that was launched in December, a big uptick. We have a pipeline of independent third-party brokers that are already in the pipeline to join that program. We have them apply, and then we train them up in that program.

We are really excited about all the uptick we have had, and as I said, we have increased our 2026 guidance significantly, 20% to 30% on the revenue line, because of what we see as the big potential in that program and the big potential on the supply side to grow that business.

David Joseph Storms: That is great. I appreciate all the commentary, and good luck next quarter.

Operator: And our next question comes from the line of Austin Nathan Moeller with Canaccord. Your line is open.

Austin Nathan Moeller: Hi, good afternoon. So when timing-wise should we think about Broker OS, Surf OS, being able to generate revenues both from new covered customers and from the demo customers.

Deanna White: Thanks, Austin. Thanks for your interest in our company. We plan to have that in 2026. We have publicly said we are commercializing Surf OS products in 2026, but we intend to see more of the revenue in the second half. The revenue is going to be coming from Broker OS. It is already happening. We have Broker OS live within our Powered by SURF On Demand program in which they are using that tool, and as the third-party brokers signed up for that program, they are already generating revenue in our on-demand business with that. We also plan to use the information, like I said, from the enterprise side of the business with our partnering of Palantir.

We are in business discussions with various stakeholders in the industry, OEMs and large operators, to either have them use the tool we use every day in our business or to develop customized tools for them. We see a big opportunity to enter into or close a deal like that this year, and we are really excited about the partnership we have with Palantir and the ability to do that.

Austin Nathan Moeller: Okay. And then just on the Beta partnership, given your statement that you no longer plan to invest the $50 million to $100 million in the Caravan electrification project, I guess the plan here is to continue looking for a JV partner to capitalize that project and otherwise move forward with using the CX300 and the ALIA 250 to do cargo and passenger transport.

Deanna White: I will have Sudhin Shahani, cofounder, he is here with us and manages everything on those strategic initiatives, answer you.

Sudhin Shahani: Hi, Austin. Yeah, to answer your question directly, on the Caravan we do intend to continue to pursue partnership opportunities. We are in talks with a number of people in the supply chain. As Deanna stated, we do not intend to fund it ourselves. But we do believe we have assets that we have created there in real value, and we do see a place for an electrified Caravan at some point in the future. So we are going to continue to explore that.

Austin Nathan Moeller: Okay. Great. I will pass it back there. Thank you.

Operator: And there are no further questions at this time. I will now turn the call back to the Surf Air Mobility Inc. executive team.

Deanna White: Thank you. We are now going to take some inbound questions. They were either submitted via our Say application or via email. The first question: we have shifted from our in-house electrification part to partnerships. How should investors think about long-term economic ownership in that model? So, Sudhin, I will turn that question over to you.

Sudhin Shahani: Thanks, Deanna. So to clarify, our electrification strategy as prior stated was really to make money in two ways. One, from the operating efficiencies generated by electrified aircraft, and the other by providing electric services to other operators, both hardware and software based. Our recently announced partnership with Beta solves for the first, and actually improves upon the first, given the amount of capital that Beta has been developing a clean-sheet design aircraft. We are in a position to realize greater operating efficiencies leveraging that aircraft and maintain a first mover advantage.

From the services side, we have made a conscious decision to allocate capital towards the initiative where we intend to continue to provide this type of software services that we originally intended to under the electrification program, but benefit on the hardware side from partners like Beta. Also to recap, we do still continue to believe we have assets of value in the Caravan program and are continuing to explore ways to monetize those.

Deanna White: Thanks, Sudhin. The next question is, what are the remaining technical hurdles before the first commercial flight of an electrified aircraft can take place? The speed of certification is the largest hurdle to do that. The FAA saw that and created the EIPP program to help OEMs certify quicker, and that is a great step toward and addresses some of those challenges. I find it super exciting that the FAA this week picked Beta for seven of the eight applications. We really picked a really good horse to do a partnership and announce that with this year. We just announced that partnership.

The EIPP program will allow an operator who is participating in those trials to certify their aircraft as much as one year sooner. And so Beta’s participation will benefit us because we will be able to take the aircraft that we just ordered earlier than thought, since they are going to be able to participate in the EIPP program. And even though our application with Hawaii and Beta was not one of the ones selected, we plan with the state of Hawaii, other partners, and Beta to launch demonstration flights in 2026 to deploy electric aircraft to prepare our network in Hawaii to accept the first aircraft from that order that are placed.

The next question is, what is the expected timeline for Surf Air Mobility Inc. to reach sustainable profitability, and which revenue segments—regional air operations, electrification, or software platform—can drive the majority of that profitability? Today, our revenue comes primarily from our regional airline operations, and we are happy to say that it is profitable today, and we will continue that profitability in 2026. With the introduction of the new electric aircraft that we will be getting with Beta, we plan to use those to launch new routes in the future, and that will improve the profitability in this business because of the operating of electric aircraft that I spoke about as far as fuel and maintenance.

Additionally, that business is going to create additional revenue through an MRO and a cargo business, and those businesses we plan to launch using the Beta partnership and the Beta aircraft order. In 2026, the majority of our growth in revenue will be coming from our on-demand charter business. We will be growing revenues and margins, and that will happen due to the use of technology we have been talking about in our Powered by SURF On Demand program and additional supplier contracts and agreements that we have with our wholesale suppliers.

On the Surf OS side, we are taking a deliberate approach to how we commercialize that in 2026, with much higher growth coming in a future year as software makes up a greater portion of our revenue. In later years, the profitability of our business will increase due to software’s higher margins. Next question is, are there active discussions with OEMs and eVTOL manufacturers to integrate Surf OS as a native aircraft operating platform. The answer to that is yes. We are actively in discussions with stakeholders within the aviation community.

Particularly for enterprise customers, we are using the Palantir teaming agreement that we have for exclusivity in the Part 135 world to develop software solutions for these large enterprise customers, like an OEM, a large operator, or a large broker. As we progress through those discussions, we will provide updates on our progress and make any announcements when final agreements are closed.

Deanna White: Lastly, the question is, how quickly is the on-demand charter segment growing, and what percent of revenue could it represent over the next two years? Our on-demand charter business is our fastest-growing part of our business. It is the primary contributor to our raised revenue guidance. We are achieving that through the deployment of our software technology and our new programs like our Broker OS Powered by SURF On Demand program. We see real opportunities also in the future to deploy the electric aircraft not only in our scheduled service but in our on-demand platform. The Beta aircraft agreement allows us to take the deliveries either on our certificate and operate them in either a scheduled service or on-demand.

We can also lease them to an individual owner as long as they are managed by us on our platform and on our certificate, and we can also provide them to other operators. We have relationships with over 400-plus operators currently in our on-demand business, and we can also use that. So we will be able to expand our revenue and our market over time. The on-demand business is going to be our clearest near-term benefit of operationalizing our Surf OS technologies, and we are really excited about what that is going to do for us this year.

Before we close the call, I would like to mention that we are participating in the Roth 38th Annual Growth Stock Conference on March 23–24. We look forward to meeting with institutional investors there, so please contact your Roth sales representative to schedule a meeting with us. To end this call, I would like to thank all of you for joining, and we look forward to reporting our Q1 results in early May. Thank you.

Operator: Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's call. We thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.

This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. Parts of this article were created using Large Language Models (LLMs) based on The Motley Fool's insights and investing approach. It has been reviewed by our AI quality control systems. Since LLMs cannot (currently) own stocks, it has no positions in any of the stocks mentioned. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability.

The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.