Assuming money was no object, is there somewhere that such an aircraft can be put, where it’s in a perfect temperature and humidity controlled environment, so that the aircraft will come out of it in 5 years time in the same condition it went in?
Or do such perfect places not exist?
If such a perfect place existed, and the cost wasn’t extraordinary, then I think I’d go with that. (You’d save on maintenance costs – no need for annual inspections while grounded in storage)
I think getting back into IFR flying at 70 yrs, having not flown for 5 years, would be greatly aided by having a familiar aircraft. Not having to spend the next few years trying to find the aircraft you want, and getting it up to spec, would be worth it.
Will Chris still by flying at 80? Statistics say probably not. Still flying at 75? Maybe / maybe not. So perhaps 5 good years of flying. He probably doesn’t want to waste too much of that time looking for his ideal aircraft again and dealing with fixing snag etc. If he’s got the perfect machine for him now, I’d be looking at ways to keep it perfect and available.
Renting to others I think will just lead to heartache. Nobody will care for “your” aircraft as you would yourself, and nobody will spend the money or be a pernickity as you would be yourself. And once you had it back would you be so confident about its history?
I PMed Chris and got quickly convinced that – regardless of his decision – taking care of a Bonanza for 5 years might be slightly too ambitious a commitment with my financial resources and (especially) limited experience.
BUT. It all got me thinking. On the renter’s side – I would personally be very happy to pay someone upfront for, say, 50, 60 dry hours per year at a market rate and borrow their aircraft long-term on a proper contract and with proper insurance. I am thinking about a year, but it could actually be half a year, or two years as well, if it makes the owner happier.
I am looking into ownership of a used TB10 or PA28 – or perhaps M20J or TB20 (if I wait a bit longer and/or find a good deal). But I still need maybe 1 or maybe 3 years to save some cash. Reading this discussion and mindful of all advice against ownership laid out elsewhere on EuroGA, I realized that a “trial ownership period” on someone’s else plane would definitely help me keep a cool-headed approach to buying and make better decisions. And also, maybe even first and foremost, let me see if it would work out as I imagine. My family did fly with me a couple of times and they claim they enjoy it. But what happens if we do a trip every month? And after all, renting from the Aeroklub, as I do right now, it’s the need to adjust to training and maintenance schedule that stands in the way of my flying and not the fact that I do not own the ship!
So – perhaps it should go to the “Marketplace” – but please do message me, if being at the other side of such a deal makes sense for any of you owners of planes capable of moving around 2 adults + 2 smaller people at 110+ kt. I boldly consider my credibility to be above average and I am lucky to live near an airport with 1000 m of hard runway and affordable hangarage ;)
Interesting thread. Of all the ideas I most like sell and buy stock with the proceeds. Second would be to rent it to a trusted airline pilot for the price of regular maintenance and insurance. 100 hour yearly limit and no sublease.
With Chris’s experience, skill set and qualifications, I would speculate he could remain grounded for 10 years, and still be back up to speed in no time.
My thoughts would be firstly really thinking about the required aircraft after returning to flying.
If it absoutely needs to be an A36 then take a chance and look to store it.
The outcome of airframe and avionics is the same as if it was used by Chris, rented, or shared.
Dehumidifiers will keep the cabin dry. I Wouldn’t be overly concerned.
The engine is a little trickier but there are procedures for it.
If it was me I’d sell.
That’s 5 years of it on my mind. I personally wouldn’t enjoy that.
I would be thinking that in the 6 months preceding returning home, I’d start looking at the market, and there are options to achieve what the A36 can offer, obviously with variables. However the ‘mission’ may have changed or an option to share something nice may exist.
Also at that point having the best of the best may be a little less important.
Chris, buying planes is easy. Sell it.
Of all the ideas I most like sell and buy stock with the proceeds.
Obviously stock can be inherited in case the market tanks. Just mentioning this because it is counter productive to liquidate at the wrong time. Generally people get out of (or reduce) stocks when they retire, not in.
A EuroGA flying group with pre paid hour packages distributed evenly around the year maybe… Chris offsets his costs (maybe even a profit) and a select group gets a good airplane for a fair price. The plane would be ready to fly anytime Chris wants it back. Win win. Probably too much headache if all the horror stories are to be trusted though (I don’t know how accurate these stories are!).
The comment above saying that Bonanza A36s are available and often very well maintained struck me as true. If that is judged to be the case the plane could be sold and replaced if wanted. Not withstanding any tax issues that may exist, the decision to me depends on the degree to which the owner knows his plane to be unique and hard to replace, versus the cost and hassle of absentee ownership.
I know in the case of King Airs you can basically calculate the sale price on a spreadsheet without seeing the plane. They really are commodity items, expected to earn their keep every day by well defined metrics. The opposite of a collector plane.
Congratulations!
When I left Europe in 2018, I was in a similar predicament. I wasn’t sure how long I’d be away and didn’t want to sell.
So I gave a very close, trusted, flight instructor friend the aircraft at about 1/2 the actual hourly rate.
He wasn’t rich and couldn’t have afforded this plane, so it let him fly to his hearts content and it kept my beauty in lovely condition.
Or friendship grew because of this situation and I think we’re much better friends now because of our constant communication.
If you have a friend you trust like that who would be blessed by a lower cost access to your aircraft, I’d give it a try.
It was so rewarding seeing his reports about where he was flying and how much he was enjoying the aircraft.
I didn’t sweat the time as he spent maybe 80 hours a year in it and it felt great that everything was taken care of.
In finally selling my plane, but I don’t regret the arrangement we’ve had for the last 2 years.
You might consider this. I was amazed how blessed I was too read trip reports from someone grateful to fly in a nice plane like it was their own.
Good luck!
If you are so lucky in friends, great – I did the same with my flat when I was abroad for two years. It is a rather unique conversion with a lot of quirks, so similar to your situation in that it was neither anything I would want to sell nor something I could easily rent out or leave empty.
I rented it to friends at cost (they paid the service charge and utilities), so I did not have to worry about it while on the other side of the planet; they were able to use the rent saved towards a deposit, and everybody was happy all round.
But I didn’t have to hunt around, I would expect if you had that option it would be as obvious as that one was to me.
My feeling is that aircraft are going to continue to drop in price over the coming years. I wouldn’t own one, other than to fly. The pool of pilots is decreasing. The number of airfields is decreasing. People are getting ever more concerned about global warming and fuel costs are likely to rise.
That said, is buying aircraft really that easy, and are you really going to be away from the country for the entire time?
