Lygg, a door-to-door air mobility start-up from Finland has raised €3.6 million to expand its private routes to more locations in Europe and beyond. The funding round was led by Superhero Capital along with private investors and Finnish government.
The company plans to utilize the funds to expand its routes to locations such as Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Stockholm, Sweden; Aberdeen, Scotland; and Frankfurt, Germany, as well as expand its reservation portal that integrates with booking tools used by major travel management companies.
The company’s mission to reduce the cost, time, stress, and carbon emissions associated with business travel simultaneously resonates with corporate customers anchoring new Lygg routes from underserved locations to larger economic centers
“Think of Lygg as the ‘Uber of aviation.’ They are democratizing private air travel by leveraging dormant assets and matching routes with demand for a seamless door-to-door experience for busy travelers,” said Juha Ruohonen, General Partner, Superhero Capital. “As we watch more and more cities lose their regional air travel services, Lygg is filling the gap with transforming regional air travel that passengers actually look forward to, in a reliable, profitable and scalable model.”
Lygg simplifies regional air travel for business travelers by offering an alternative to the conventional hub approach to commercial air travel. The company caters to locations underserved by commercial carriers. Once established, anyone can book a flight on the new Lygg route. The passengers can save on time and cost as they fly directly to the desired destination.
“With a traditional regional carrier, you’re up before dawn and home well after dinner. It’s not uncommon for people to travel ten hours or more door-to-door just for a meeting,” said Roope Kekalainen, co-founder and CEO of Lygg. “Post-pandemic, corporations are not in a position to require such arduous travel schedules from their employees. With Lygg, our corporate clients are cutting these travel times in half, saving money, and making these requested business trips more enjoyable and productive.”
With Lygg, travelers can save up to 87% of their travel time, while corporations can save on costs while prioritizing employee wellbeing. Additionally, a Lygg flight can reduce the carbon footprint of a traveler, thus further reducing a corporation’s travel emissions by up to 75%.
The technology and associated smartphone app that powerLygg’s platform enables accurate passenger and cargo volume measurement over time, which allows Lygg to sustainably organize direct flights and frequencies with as few empty seats as possible.
“Throughout Europe and the United States, there is still a high percentage of executives that must travel to conduct business, yet telling people they have to take a train or simply fly less is not the answer,” Jari Viinikkala, co-founder and CFO of Lygg. “Instead, the answer is optimization, and Lygg is answering this call with our direct-route platform that’s future-proofed to scale with the zero-emission solutions currently in development.”
The platform also serves as a management solution for operators of small aircraft assets.
“Lygg caters to a two-sided market, offering travel solutions that leverage under-used assets, including smaller, peripheral airports and business terminals, and adapted aircraft categories,” continued Viinikkala. “Our offering allows aircraft owners and operators the ability to maximize their assets and increase their revenue. With this new round of funding, we look forward to expanding our operator base and offering more routes.”