may chime in….

while the reputation of a shop which may have done recent inspections on a bird, certainly is a factor to consider…

IT IS NO SUBSTITUE for a correct pre-buy…

you need to do a PPI on EVERY bird you consider for purchase…whether it may be a Bo or a G-550...

Hi Chip, I read your blog posts and found it interesting. I am curious on your thoughts if there is a benefit to your type of services when looking at buying new aircraft? As this is something that is we are talking about doing with the difference being this would be a personal, non business use aircraft. So far making do with the TBM 850 but getting more serious about something with more seats.

Tom,

In that situation I would review the work done, assuming I was comfortable with the shop it wouldn't be necessary to repeat the inspections. My preference would be to have another shop or possibly just a mechanic do a prebuy inspection and logbook review.

It of course depends on the type of aircraft but in most cases I have mobile guys who can do an extensive prebuy right in the current owner's hangar.

There's really two sections of this process, should I buy it... and what am I buying.

To the first part, I travel to inspect the airplane and make that decision with 99% certainty before it goes to pre-purchase inspections. This is easier on turbines than pistons, and one of the reasons I don't do pistons, because I have access to the ownership history including what other aircraft the owner operated. What he may have replaced the aircraft with etc., when armed with that info I review the logbooks a really clear picture starts to form of what kind of aircraft we have.

The mechanical part is simply making sure everything works and finding anything that needs to be repaired, usually at the expense of the seller. That way the new owner starts out with a clean slate and won't (shouldn't) be surprised by a huge maintenance bill at his next shop visit.

Definitely no substitute for a prebuy!

Johnathan,

GREAT question and an area where most do not consider using a buyer's rep... the purchase of a new aircraft does eliminate some concerns as far as pre-purchase, though we do joke that you could take a new aircraft to a service center and run up a big list. But, assuming a full warranty will be in place the mechanical condition isn't a great concern. I do inspect the aircraft... make sure it wasn't built on a Friday afternoon

There's no logbooks to review either, so for the most part it is all about the deal.

This is really where we earn our money in all transactions and it couldn't be a bigger factor than it is in a new aircraft. The difference in what two separate buyers pay for the same airplane can be astonishing. I don't want to disparage any of the manufacturers, but I think some buyers forget that these guys are in business to make money... and that nice guy you are talking to is a commisioned sales person.

Especially when buying a new aircraft you need representation. We know all the tricks, we know what to ask for, and how to negotiate the deal to keep more money in our client's pocket.

I can't speak for other acquisition guys, but we charge the same flat fee to purchase a new airplane as we do the 20 year old version of the same model, so as a percentage of the sales price our fee becomes quite negligible.

We of course take care of the details like aviation attorneys, Jason pointed that out and he's right. I'll be adding that to the blog post. This is important because the agreements the manufacturers use have some protection clauses that need attention, and at least understanding if not modification.

I'll be glad to give you contact info for some of the other firms you might consider based on what type of aircraft you are thinking, should you choose us, it would be an honor to work for you!