Simplicity as a design choice
Shared hosting, MySQL, no containers, no server dependencies. Auth, hashing, push and payments are built on Node built-ins. Fewer moving parts means less that can break — and lower running costs.
What I build
Three disciplines, one supplier
No scattered islands, but one coherent system — from public website to mobile app, all running on the same API.
WEB / SPA
Web applications
Complete business systems in the browser: scheduling, CRM, invoicing, assessments. React front-ends on a Node.js API — fast, multilingual and built for daily operational use.
IOS / ANDROID
Mobile apps
Fully native apps: Swift for iOS and native Android. With self-hosted push notifications via APNs and FCM, offline documents and secure long-lived sessions. App Store and Play Store guidance included.
API / AI
Integrations & AI
Connections with Mollie, Meta lead ads, Messenger, WhatsApp and Zapier. And AI where it genuinely helps: a Claude-based planner that can only pick from pre-validated options — so it never hallucinates.
Case study — NextLevel Pilots
Seven applications, one API
For NextLevel Pilots — a non-profit airline training institute — V-Rotate built a complete platform: from the lead funnel on the website to digitally signed simulator sessions. Everything talks to the same backend. Six applications run daily; the newest — the Admin app — is in TestFlight beta.
NLP-PLNScheduling SPA
NLP-WEBWebsite
NLP-AIRAirline portal
NLP-SIMSimulator app
NLP-APPCompanion app
NLP-COMCommunity
NLP-ADMAdmin app
WEBHOOKS: META / MESSENGER / ZAPIERCRON: REMINDERS / DIGESTSPUSH: APNS / FCMMOLLIE PAYMENTSWHATSAPP TEMPLATES
Scheduling & CRM
NLP-PLNThe operational heart: lesson scheduling with conflict detection, a lead funnel with unified inbox (email + Messenger), EASA CBTA competency assessments with digital signatures, invoicing with Mollie payment links — and an AI planner looking 8 weeks ahead.
React 183 languagesClaude AIMollie
Public website
NLP-WEBStatically built marketing site and lead engine. Forms flow straight into the CRM — with GDPR consent, bot detection and source tracking. News, reviews and start dates are managed in the scheduling app and appear live, without a deploy.
AstroNL/ENMeta CAPI
Airline portal
NLP-AIRRecruiters see anonymised candidate profiles — flight hours, ratings, competencies — without contact details. Only when a candidate explicitly consents is data shared. Privacy by design, revocable at any time.
Consent flowDedicated API scope
Simulator app
NLP-SIMThe paper maintenance logbook fully digitised: session management with digital signing, defect registration with ATA codes, daily checks and modification records for the flight simulator.
Tech logATA codesTechnician role
NextLevel Companion
NLP-APPNative apps (iOS and Android) for students and instructors: submit availability, view scheduled lessons, read syllabi offline. Push via APNs and FCM under our own control, deep links straight to the right screen, refresh-token rotation for secure mobile sessions.
Native SwiftAPNs + FCMOffline docs
Admin app (iOS)
NLP-ADMThe CRM in management's pocket: leads, unified inbox and follow-up tasks on the go, with a push notification the moment a new lead arrives. Native Swift, passed Apple's Beta App Review — now in TestFlight beta.
Native SwiftCRM pushTestFlight beta
Community
NLP-COMA discussion forum of its own, replacing Slack: channels, replies and emoji reactions, unread badges, search and a weekly email digest. Available at its own web address and inside the iOS and Android apps — community members see only the community, thanks to a dedicated role with strictly scoped API access.
Forum & channelsDedicated role + API scopeWeb + apps
EFB & flight plans
NLP-EFBFor the simulator trainings, the flight-plan module grew into a full Electronic Flight Bag: route planning with SID/STAR and A* routing across the airway network, an OFP with fuel and weight calculations based on B737 performance tables, an FMS summary, weather briefing and an offline vector chart of its own with IFR symbology — in the web app and the iOS app.
A* routingB738 fuel modelCustom IFR chart
Invisible, but essential
NLP-OPSDaily off-site database backups with a GFS retention scheme (3 days / 4 weeks / 24 months), seven user roles, separated dev and production environments, and migrations that run safely and automatically on every start.
Nextcloud/WebDAVGFS backups7 roles
7 + 1applications on one shared API
3languages across UI, manual and system email
66database tables
124React components in the scheduling app
30+releases in five days, with verify gates
Approach
Enterprise patterns, no-nonsense infrastructure
Aviation teaches you that simplicity and discipline beat complexity. That same philosophy lives in the code.
AI that cannot hallucinate
The AI planner picks from pre-computed, valid options instead of generating freely. The server validates and repairs. In a system where mistakes hit real lessons, that is the only responsible architecture.
Security by default
JWT with token revocation, scrypt passwords with silent upgrade, rate limiting, CORS allowlists and daily off-site backups. Not an afterthought, but there from the first line.
Privacy by design
Consent flows on the website and portal, data minimisation towards Meta, audit trails when merging records. The candidate decides what gets shared — and can always revoke it.
How it works
From first call to software that flies
Never commissioned software before? This is what the journey looks like — five phases, no surprises.
1 · BRIEFING
Intro call
We discuss what hurts in your operation: what is manual, slow or error-prone? No strings attached, free of charge.
2 · FLIGHT PLAN
Scope & proposal
A concrete plan: what we build first, what can wait, and what it costs. Starting small is fine — a working slice beats a big plan on paper.
3 · BUILD
Watch it grow on dev
You get your own test environment and see the software take shape. Every step is clickable right away — feedback is processed in days, not months.
4 · TAKEOFF
Go-live
A careful move to production, your team shown around, and extra attention during the first weeks.
5 · CRUISE
Care & evolution
Software is never finished. Backups and updates are taken care of, and new wishes are picked up in short, clear iterations.
Mobile
In your users' pockets too
Fully native on both platforms: the NextLevel Companion is built in Swift for iOS and natively for Android — without expensive subscription services for push or auth.
- Push under your own control. Directly via Apple (APNs) and Google (FCM) — no paid middleman, no data to third parties.
- Deep links. A reminder opens exactly the right screen, such as this month's availability form.
- Offline documents. Syllabi and briefing material readable without a connection — at the platform or on the go.
- Store-proof. Refresh-token rotation, in-app account deletion and privacy statements: every App Store and Play Store requirement covered.
TUE 14 JUL · WK 29
Your schedule
APS-MCC · Session 7
09:00–13:00 · SIM 1 · Confirmed
CBTA briefing
14:00–15:00 · Room B · Signed
REMINDER — SUBMIT YOUR AVAILABILITY FOR AUGUST →
Own development
Crew Recovery: sleep and alertness for crew, from your own roster and body clock
Alongside client work I am building an app of my own: an iOS, Apple Watch and Android app that combines roster, circadian model and Watch data into actionable sleep advice for airline crew — including a bunk rest planner and the short-layover rule consumer apps miss. No backend, everything on-device. Now free on the App Store and Google Play, with Plus as a subscription.
Training — the other branch
Beyond the code: the cockpit
V-Rotate is not just software. As an instructor with 18+ years of airline experience, I train pilots on their way to the right-hand seat — through NextLevel Pilots.
TRN-MCC
(APS-)MCC & JOC
The bridge between flight school and airline cockpit: from flying solo to multi-crew cooperation, with the procedures and mindset airlines expect.
TRN-GRD
Grading preparation
Focused preparation for airline selections and gradings — tailored to the candidate and the airline, with one goal: maximum success rate on the day it counts.
TRN-SKL
Skills maintenance
Low on flight hours? Tailor-made simulator sessions keep your proficiency and confidence sharp until the next step.
About V-Rotate
Built by someone who uses it himself
V-Rotate is the company of Stefan Burm: airline pilot and instructor with over 18 years of experience at a renowned airline — and software developer. That combination is not a footnote; it is the product.
When you schedule lessons, sign assessments and run simulator sessions yourself, you know exactly where operational software falls short. Every feature in the NextLevel platform was born from a real problem on the floor — and is tested there daily.
The two branches reinforce each other: instructing produces the sharpest feature ideas, and the software makes the instructing better. Whatever doesn't work on the floor doesn't make the next release.
Is your flight school, simulator operator or aviation company looking for software that truly understands the operation — or an instructor to get your candidates ready? Let's talk.
Ready to rotate?
Tell me what is manual, slow or error-prone in your operation — and we'll look at what software can do about it together.
Prefer email? stefan@v-rotate.com