Advertising Enquiries see Page 12 http://www.AVBUYER.com July 2018 – AVBUYERMAGAZINE 95
#1: Advice
Firstly, hire expert advice. Whether it’s a
professional broker that you mandate
exclusively to work for you without conflict, or a
recognized industry consultant to support your
Flight Department, you should budget for this
expense. The investment will be worth every
penny! Crucially, the advice needs to be
independent, and entirely unbiased.
There are also helpful software tools
available from independent sources that can
help you compare aircraft and develop a
thorough budget. Input should include an
analysis of the maintenance status of the
aircraft to evaluate and appraise the
maintenance adjusted value, as well as to
account for any challenges or costs associated
with the potential transfer of registration to
another country or state.#2: Engine Status
Know the condition or status of the engines
and their value and be informed of where the
engines are in their maintenance cycles.
If the engines are on a “hard-time”
inspection program, you need to know how
long it is until the next major maintenanceevent and whether it is a hot section inspection
or an overhaul. If the engines are on an “on-
condition” inspection program, you need to
know when the next borescope inspections are
due and account for these in the budget.
Are the engines covered by a maintenance
program and, if so, what exactly is covered by
that program?
These programs vary and it’s best to contact
the program provider to understand the details
of the coverage. Some programs can be sold
with the pre-enrolled aircraft and some cannot.
Sometimes owners want to take the equity in
the maintenance program and transfer it to a
new aircraft, so those benefits would not be
available to the aircraft with the sale.
In addition, you should know what provisions
are in place for payment or coverage of loaner
engines whenever off-wing maintenance events
are required. Most operators do not want the
airplane grounded while major engine
maintenance is happening. Accordingly, loaner
engines are common practice, but sometimes
there is limited availability for specific engine
models, which could drive the costs up.
It’s always better to plan and budget for
these events in advance.Brendan Lodge supports both JSSI Advisory
Services and JSSI Parts from their
Farnborough, UK, office. His long aviation
career includes extensive experience in asset
finance and business aircraft sales broking.
Contact him via [email protected]Maintenance3final.qxp_Finance 19/06/2018 12:22 Page 2