Surf Air Mobility Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Surf Air Mobility beat Q1 expectations, reporting $25.6 million in revenue at the high end of guidance and an Adjusted EBITDA loss of $12.3 million, better than planned. Management also raised full-year 2026 Adjusted EBITDA loss guidance to $25 million–$30 million from $40 million–$50 million.
• The company’s Surf On Demand charter business had a record quarter, with revenue up 77% year over year to $10.1 million and margins improving. Growth was driven by more higher-value flights and better booking efficiency through BrokerOS.
• SurfOS and the BETA partnership are central to Surf Air Mobility’s long-term strategy. SurfOS is expected to drive cost savings and future software revenue, while the BETA deal could eliminate up to $100 million in planned capex and support electric aircraft operations starting later this decade.

Surf Air Mobility NYSE: SRFM reported first-quarter 2026 results that came in at the high end of its revenue outlook and ahead of its Adjusted EBITDA guidance, while management raised its full-year profitability forecast and emphasized cost savings from its SurfOS technology platform.

Chief Executive Officer Deanna White said revenue for the quarter was $25.6 million, at the high end of the company’s $24 million to $26 million guidance range, while Adjusted EBITDA loss was $12.3 million, better than the company’s prior outlook. Chief Financial Officer Oliver Reeves said total revenue rose 9% year over year.

Surf Air Mobility maintained its full-year 2026 revenue guidance of $128 million to $138 million, representing 20% to 30% growth over 2025. The company improved its 2026 Adjusted EBITDA loss guidance to a range of $25 million to $30 million, compared with prior guidance for a loss of $40 million to $50 million.

White said the revised Adjusted EBITDA outlook reflects four factors: expected cost reductions from SurfOS in the airline and charter businesses, corporate automation and procurement discipline, revenue growth in the company’s charter business through Powered by Surf On Demand, and lower SurfOS development costs through AI-assisted build cycles.

“The bigger picture is that SurfOS is now visibly moving our financial results,” White said.

Airline Operations Improve Metrics as Route Rationalization Continues

Louis Saint-Cyr, President of Airline Operations, said Surf Air Mobility’s two airline brands, Southern Airways Express and Mokulele Airlines, carried about 65,000 passengers on nearly 13,000 departures during the quarter. Scheduled service revenue was $15.5 million, down 13% year over year, which management said reflected the planned exit of unprofitable routes.

Saint-Cyr said the company maintained a controllable completion factor of 96%, with on-time departures of 72% and on-time arrivals of 78%, all improved from the prior-year period. He said SurfOS tools for crew scheduling, aircraft dispatch and maintenance digitization helped reduce costs and improve reliability.

In Hawaii, Saint-Cyr said Surf Air Mobility renovated its Honolulu airport hub terminal and took delivery of two new Cessna Caravans in April. He also said the company completed implementation of its safety management system, or SMS, in April, one year ahead of the FAA’s May 2027 mandate. According to Saint-Cyr, Surf Air Mobility is one of nine Part 135 commuter operators in the U.S. to complete an operational SMS.

Surf On Demand Posts Record Quarter

Joshua Loden, President of Surf On Demand, said the private charter business generated $10.1 million in first-quarter revenue, up 77% year over year and its highest quarterly revenue since inception. He said March was the business’s highest revenue month ever, while gross margins improved 340 basis points from the same quarter last year.

Loden attributed the growth to a shift toward higher-value flights and efficiency gains from BrokerOS. He said revenue per flight rose 38% in the quarter, long-haul flights of more than 1,000 miles increased 149%, international departures rose 87%, and flights on aircraft with more than nine seats were up 49%.

BrokerOS contributed to top brokers closing 32% more bookings, quote-to-close time improving 57%, and payments processed on platform increasing 40%, Loden said, comparing first-quarter 2026 with the prior-year period.

The company ended the first quarter with six active independent brokers enrolled in the Powered by Surf On Demand program, a figure that has since grown to 29. Loden said the company has hundreds of additional applications in the queue and is targeting 100 independent brokers by year-end.

In March, Surf On Demand received ARGUS Certified Charter Broker accreditation, which Loden said makes it one of 16 ARGUS-certified brokerages globally. The business also joined the Air Charter Safety Foundation.

SurfOS Commercialization Plans Advance

Co-Founder Liam Fayed said SurfOS is being developed using operational and commercial data from Surf Air Mobility’s airline and charter businesses before products are offered externally. He described the broader market opportunity across charter aviation, private aircraft sales and maintenance, repair and overhaul aftermarket as an estimated $156 billion global opportunity.

Fayed said BrokerOS launched commercially in December 2025 and is being monetized through a take rate across on-demand private charter bookings. OperatorOS, designed for small and mid-sized Part 135 operators, is targeted for commercial launch in the second half of 2026. The company has 17 letters of intent and software agreements signed for OperatorOS, with 2026 targets of 10 additional LOIs and five operators live by year-end.

Fayed also said SurfOS Enterprise Solutions targets large operators, charter brokerages and aircraft manufacturers. He said Palantir’s forward-deployed engineering team is participating in enterprise sales conversations under an exclusive teaming agreement, and the company is seeking to close multi-year, multi-million-dollar contracts in 2026.

During the Q&A, Sudhin Shahani, Co-Founder of Surf Air Mobility, said the Palantir partnership provides access to Foundry and AIP infrastructure, development and deployment resources, business development support and tools to launch AI agents more quickly. He said Surf Air Mobility has an exclusive arrangement with Palantir in the charter broker and operator category.

BETA Partnership Remains Central to Electric Aircraft Strategy

White said Surf Air Mobility’s partnership with BETA Technologies remains central to its electric aircraft ambitions. In March, the company announced a firm order for 25 BETA all-electric aircraft, with options for 75 more, and said it was designated as BETA’s launch operator for commercial passenger electric service.

White said the agreement also made Surf Air Mobility BETA’s exclusive maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in its launch market of Hawaii, with the ability to expand into additional regions. She said the partnership allowed Surf Air Mobility to eliminate up to $100 million in planned capital expenditures on its Cessna Caravan powertrain electrification program.

Saint-Cyr said BETA cargo demonstration flights in Hawaii are expected to begin at the end of June and run for about two months. He said the flights will allow Surf Air Mobility and BETA teams to exchange operational knowledge and data while validating aircraft performance between Honolulu, Molokai and Lanai.

In response to an investor question, Saint-Cyr said the BETA aircraft is expected to cost about 30% less to operate per aircraft compared with the Cessna Caravan, driven by fuel and maintenance savings. He said the first aircraft arrival is expected in about 24 months, referring to the end of the fourth quarter of 2028.

Second-Quarter Outlook and Capital Raise

For the second quarter of 2026, Reeves said Surf Air Mobility expects revenue of $27 million to $30 million and an Adjusted EBITDA loss of $8.5 million to $10.5 million. He said the outlook reflects continued growth in On Demand private charter and the effect of prior-year exits from unprofitable scheduled-service routes.

Reeves said second-quarter guidance also reflects two external headwinds: higher global fuel prices and April weather in Hawaii, which drove elevated cancellations on the inter-island network. He said the company responded to fuel pressure with targeted fare actions in markets where demand supports them.

The company also raised $30 million in April, including $15 million through a non-dilutive aircraft-backed credit facility and $15 million in common equity. Reeves said proceeds are primarily intended to accelerate SurfOS implementation and fund electrification initiatives. He added that co-founders, the chairman, CEO, CFO and other directors collectively purchased about $5.3 million of Surf Air Mobility common stock in the offering.

About Surf Air Mobility NYSE: SRFM

Surf Air Mobility Inc operates as an electric aviation and air travel company in the United States. The company offers an air mobility platform with scheduled routes and on demand charter flights operated by third parties. Surf Air Mobility Inc is headquartered in Hawthorne, California.

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