Draft:ExpertFlyer

ExpertFlyer

ExpertFlyer is a subscription tool that provides travelers with airline flight data, including fare-class inventory, seat maps, and award and upgrade availability, plus notifies subscribers via email or text message when seats or inventory become available. Additional alerts include schedule and aircraft changes. The service has been owned and operated by Red Ventures since 2018.

History

ExpertFlyer was created by three frequent flyers from Long Island: Chris Lopinto, an information technology specialist; his father, John Lopinto, who had founded an electronics manufacturing firm in 1983; and Chris Lopinto's uncle Joseph Lopinto, a longtime pilot for Continental Airlines.

Chris Lopinto began building the first version of the website in 2004 while also running Hillcrest Technologies, an IT consultancy he had founded; the service launched in 2005, and he sold Hillcrest Technologies in 2006 to work on ExpertFlyer full-time.

Writing in The Wall Street Journal in July 2005, travel editor Scott McCartney reported that the company secured data from the three major airline reservation systems and worked with a software developer to present it on a website. McCartney wrote that the site had been created "to throw that fare matrix onto a screen for road warriors", and quoted John Lopinto as saying, "We're pushing information that has always been available out to decision-makers."

In January 2012, the company made its Seat Alert feature available at no cost, allowing users to be notified by email or text message when a seat became available on a fully booked flight.

On 6 November 2018, Expert Travel Services LLC was acquired by Red Ventures, a South Carolina-based operator of websites including The Points Guy. Chris Lopinto, then company president, said the service would continue to operate as it had and that the acquisition would allow it to "expand and grow in ways we could not have before on our own."

In March 2026, EF refreshed its subscription tiers which added detailed seat maps, increased the number of alerts, and added an expanded search for American Airlines Systemwide Upgrade inventory across hundreds of routes and a 330-day window, which is available only on the newly released Elite tier.

Service

ExpertFlyer displays airline data that is not generally shown on consumer booking screens, and does not sell tickets. Features have included flight availability by fare class booking bucket, award and upgrade inventory searches, aircraft seat maps, published fares and fare rules, flight status, schedules and timetables, and alerts that monitor seats, availability, schedule changes, and aircraft changes. Coverage of award and upgrade inventory has depended on which airlines make that data available. In 2005, The Wall Street Journal reported that the site carried frequent-flyer award inventory from American Airlines, Air France, and Qantas, and upgrade availability from American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, while offering fare inventory and seat maps for a wider set of carriers.

Reception

Reviewing the service for NBC News in February 2007, travel author Joel Widzer wrote that deciphering airfares was difficult and that ExpertFlyer "gives consumers unfettered and transparent access to travel intelligence, eliminating the need for third-party intervention".

Following the 2026 changes, Matthew Klint, reviewer for the blog Live and Let's Fly, wrote that the AeroLOPA seat maps and expanded upgrade search were useful improvements.

References

1. McCartney, Scott. "Beyond Orbitz: How To Find the Best Tickets." The Wall Street Journal, 5 July 2005. https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB112051884696176873
2. "60 Seconds with Chris Lopinto, Co-founder and President of ExpertFlyer." InsideFlyer, 6 January 2012. https://www.insideflyer.com/2012/01/06/60-seconds-with-chris-lopinto-co-founder-and-president-of-expertflyer/
3. "New parent for Long Island travel-data 'Expert'." Innovate Long Island. https://www.innovateli.com/new-parent-for-long-island-travel-data-expert/
4. "ExpertFlyer Adds New Features And Elite Tier, But Prices Are Rising." Live and Let's Fly, March 2026. https://liveandletsfly.com/expertflyer-new-features-elite-tier-pricing/
5. Widzer, Joel. "ExpertFlyer: It can serve you well." msnbc.com, 14 February 2007. https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna17149886
6. "Loyalty for those in loyalty programs." Innovate Long Island. https://www.innovateli.com/loyalty-for-those-in-loyalty-programs/
7. "ExpertFlyer Adds Seat Maps, Expanded Upgrade Searches, and More Alerts." Upgraded Points, March 2026. https://upgradedpoints.com/news/expertflyer-new-features-seat-maps-upgrade-search-alerts/