This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Tuesday, June 21st, 2016.

I'm Caleb Brown.

Flight now aims to let private pilots fill their empty seats on trips around the country, the FAA wants any pilot who participates

to register as a commercial carrier.

Matt Voska is co-founder of Flight Now, we spoke last month.

Just a brief overview of what Flight Now is, it lets private pilots who have empty seats on their flights,

share those with other people who might be going

the same way.

So it's cheaper for everyone involved and makes better use of our resources.

All right, that sounds fine.

What is the problem with that?

So the problem is the FAA has said that any pilot

who posts that they're taking a flight publicly in hopes of finding someone to come with and split the cost is essentially a

commercial airline, a common carrier because they are both advertising and collecting compensation even though it does not meet the common law requirements

of a common carriage to be a major enterprise for profit.

And it's not, in a sense, for profit,

these are people who are defraying from costs

they would otherwise already be absorbing.

Exactly.

So if you and I are flying, let's say from Boston to Martha's Vineyard, the whole flight cost me maybe $200, I have to pay at least $100.

Now if there's a third person coming, I have to pay at least 33%.

So it's a pro rata share that's the minimum that the pilot must pay.

...