Aircraft Sourcing Manager Santa Barbara, On-Site

Aircraft Sourcing Manager - Sales & Buyers Wanted (Santa Barbara, On-Site)

Department: Charter Sales

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Santa Barbara

Compensation: $72,000 - $80,000 / year

At Silver Air, we've built something rare in private aviation: a Part 135 operation where safety, transparency, and client advocacy aren't just talking points—they're how we've earned our reputation.

Our Flight Club™ membership and on-demand charter business give clients access to a global fleet through one of the most trusted names in private aviation. We don't chase every trip. We chase the right trips—the ones that meet our standards and deliver real value to clients and aircraft owners alike (https://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below).).

We're now hiring an Aircraft Sourcing Manager to join our Santa Barbara headquarters and own a critical piece of our commercial engine.

Compensation: $72,000 – $80,000 annually DOE + relocation assistance (Downtown On-Site Santa Barbara HQ – 2 blocks from the beach)

You'll be the first line of defense between our Private Jet Advisors (PJAs) and the operator marketplace.

When a PJA needs aircraft options for a client trip, you source them. When an operator sends pricing, you negotiate it. When a deal doesn't make commercial sense, you kill it. When it does, you package clean, margin‑smart options so our sales team can focus on what they do best: building client relationships and closing business.

This is a pit‑style role. Fast, commercial, high‑stakes. You'll manage 15-25 active sourcing requests simultaneously, negotiate with operators in real time, and make confident calls with incomplete information. It's chess at 2x speed.

Here's what a typical day looks like:

• 8:30 AM - Check overnight requests. Three urgent trips came in: SBA to Aspen (tomorrow), LAX to Cabo (Friday), Miami to Teterboro (repositioning play).
• 9:00 AM - Fire up Avinode. Query 12 operators for the Aspen trip. Target margin: 18%. You get quotes back ranging from $14K to $22K. You counter three of them.
• 10:15 AM - An operator calls. They're high on the Cabo trip but want to tack on a fuel surcharge. You push back, and do so firmly but professionally. You get them to $500 instead of $1,200.
• 11:00 AM - PJA needs a sanity check on a Paris‑London‑Geneva multi‑leg. You flag that Leg 2's crew will time out unless they overnight in London. You source the workaround and present two options with cost deltas.
• 1:00 PM - You kill a trip. Operator's aircraft doesn't meet our safety minimums, pricing is underwater, and the client's timeline is unrealistic. You explain why to the PJA. They thank you for the save.
• 3:30 PM - Flight Club member wants a rush quote for tomorrow. You source four vetted options in 90 minutes, rank them by value and reliability, and hand them off with margin breakdowns and operator notes.

You're the gatekeeper. The margin protector. The operator whisperer. And you're extremely good at it.

• Source aircraft through Avinode, operator networks, and vendor relationships across domestic and international markets
• Negotiate pricing, ferry positioning, fuel surcharges, overnight costs, and terms — aggressively but professionally
• Apply margin targets to every trip: you know when we're at 22% vs. 12%, and you elevate when deals fall outside parameters
• Filter out low‑quality operators before they ever reach the sales team
• Say "no" to bad deals with confidence and clear commercial rationale

• Remove sourcing burden so PJAs can focus on client strategy, discovery, and closing
• Deliver vetted "go-forward" options ranked by safety, operator quality, margin, and feasibility
• Anticipate questions: crew duty limits, repositioning logic, international requirements, fuel stops, de‑ice capabilities
• Flag red flags: questionable operators, unrealistic timelines, weather/airport restrictions, regulatory roadblocks
• Support complex itineraries requiring multi‑leg sourcing, international permits, or unusual routing

• Build and maintain a network of reliable domestic and international operators
• Track operator performance: on‑time record,…